Lorenzo Musetti reached his first Grand Slam semi-final yesterday by eliminating American Taylor Fritz, 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2, 3-6 and 6-1, at Wimbledon and will now face Novak Djokovic.
The 22-year-old Italian had never made it past the third round at the All England Club — or the fourth round at any major — until now.
Now Musetti will face Djokovic looking for his ticket to the final.
“He probably knows the surface and the stadium better than I do,” said Musetti, aware that he will make his debut on Centre Court tomorrow. “No kidding, he is a legend everywhere, but especially at Wimbledon.”
Playing in the sun on Court 1 against Fritz, who has one of the best serves but is 0-4 in major quarterfinals, Musetti had 13 break points and converted six. The decisive break came on a forehand winner by Musetti for 2-0 in the final set and another break for 4-0.
Musetti had to work hard to earn his place in the top four. With his 3 1/2-hour win over Fritz (13), his record of 37 five-set duels at Wimbledon this year is the most for any Grand Slam.
Novak Djokovic’s trouble-free run through his Wimbledon tie was further enhanced yesterday after he advanced without playing following Alex de Minaur’s withdrawal with a hip injury.
In the women’s quarterfinals, 2022 champion Elena Rybakina won 9 of her last 11 games to beat Elena Svitolina (21) 6-3, 6-2, while Barbora Krejcikova (31) eliminated Jelena Ostapenko 6-4, 7-6 (4) in a duel between former French Open champions.
Rybakina sealed the win with her seventh ace and improved to 19-2 at Wimbledon in four appearances. “I definitely have an aggressive style of play,” Rybakina said. “I have a strong serve and that’s a big advantage.”
Their match lasted an hour and a minute — less than Krejcikova’s second set against Ostapenko, who at one point asked her coach to leave.
The other semifinal will be between Jasmine Paolini (7) and Donna Vekic.—AP
#Musetti #knocks #Fritz #Wimbledon
2024-07-26 14:02:16
