WHAT HAPPENED: The glow from the Olympic bronze medal Lorenzo Musetti won in Paris earlier this month has not lost its shine for the crowd-pleasing Italian.
The No. 18 seed saved two match points to hold off Serb Miomir Kecmanovic in a titanic thriller, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 7-5, on Wednesday in a memorable US Open second-round clash.
In the last set Musetti earned the decisive service break in the 11th game with some incredible defense from deep in the court before Kecmanovic missed a forehand on the first break point.
Musetti closed out the match in style with a love service game punctuated by his 12th ace on match point to finally raise his arms in weary triumph after three hours and 47 minutes of battle to bask in the cheers of an adoring packed Court 5 crowd.
The 22-year-old Italian is in the US Open third round for the second time in the last two years.
The match started in the late afternoon and finished under the lights, giving the players a reprieve from the soaring heat and humidity that blanketed the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center grounds on Day 3 of the year’s last Grand Slam.
Musetti grabbed a 1-0 final-set lead with a service break on a spectacular running backhand cross court winner. But Kecmanovic responded with his own brilliance, cracking a forehand winner to break serve and even the set at 2-2.
The Serb had two match points on Musetti’s serve in the 10th game. The Italian boldly stayed aggressive on both, saving the first with a forehand volley winner and the next with an ace.
Musetti won a video challenge on a “not-up” call on a drop shot in the second game of the fourth set, but then lost the replayed point and his serve to fall behind 0-2.
WHAT IT MEANS: This gutsy win just adds more luster to what has been a sparkling and breakout summer for the Italian.
Since reaching the French Open third round, he has gone on a surge, making the final at Queen’s Club, the Wimbledon semifinals and then claiming the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics.
MATCH POINT: The charismatic Musetti who was supported by the bulk of the fans at today’s match with Italian soccer chants might find himself in a little bit different position in his next match against up and coming American Brandon Nakashima.
Will it affect Musetti?
