Alcaraz beats Musetti to secure year-end world no 1 spot
Carlos Alcaraz was much too good for an exhausted Lorenzo Musetti, beating him 6-4 6-1 to guarantee he ends the year as world no 1, avoids Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals of this competition, and confirms the unlikely last-four presence of Alex de Minaur.
Like many involving Alcaraz, the first set was tight until it wasn’t, Musetti serving well until, down 4-5, he lost an 11-minute game and with it the set.
It was one-way traffic thereafter, an exhausted Musetti, who played through the Asian swing and lost a marathon final in Athens to Novak Djokovic, just last Sunday, unable to cope as Alcaraz upped his level. And though he needed three match points to finish off, the outcome was never in doubt. Next for him: Felix Auger-Aliassime or Alexander Zverev.
Key events
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Alcaraz beats Musetti to secure year-end world no 1 spot
Carlos Alcaraz was much too good for an exhausted Lorenzo Musetti, beating him 6-4 6-1 to guarantee he ends the year as world no 1, avoids Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals of this competition, and confirms the unlikely last-four presence of Alex de Minaur.
Like many involving Alcaraz, the first set was tight until it wasn’t, Musetti serving well until, down 4-5, he lost an 11-minute game and with it the set.
It was one-way traffic thereafter, an exhausted Musetti, who played through the Asian swing and lost a marathon final in Athens to Novak Djokovic, just last Sunday, unable to cope as Alcaraz upped his level. And though he needed three match points to finish off, the outcome was never in doubt. Next for him: Felix Auger-Aliassime or Alexander Zverev.
Alcaraz says he was able to play without nerves as he was already in the semi, but he wanted to secure the year-end world no 1 status and is happy that he did. That was an important goal for him, but the tournament is a big one for him and he’s glad to have the chance to play another semi-final; part of the job is done, but the other part is still going.
Alcaraz stands to applaud Musetti as he leaves – he’s such a mensch. And he also loves his tennis, so will appreciate how hard the Italian worked to qualify here, playing all through the Asian swing to get enough points so that when Djokovic dropped out, he was the alternate, and I’m sure he enjoyed the De Minaur match too.
Carlos Alcaraz beats Lorenzo Musetti 6-4 6-1 to end the year as world no 1
*Alcaraz 6-4 5-1 Musetti Not infrequently, we see Alcaraz broken in these situations, but I don’t know if Musetti has that in his legs. A netted forehand though, gives him 15-30 … for all the good it does him, a forehand ushered to the corner restoring parity, then a pick-up half-volley at net that falls just wide, hands over match point. Which goes unconverted, a forehand going well long, but a serve out wide, followed by an overhead, raises another … then Musetti stretches into a return Alcaraz leaves to go out, en route to net for the handshake … except it drops on to the outermost fibre of the line! No matter, it’s soon advantage again, a service winner seals the deal, and Alcaraz will end the year as world no 1 and avoid Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals, while taking De Minaur with him. He is quite good at tennis.
Alcaraz 6-4 5-1 Musetti* An overhit forehand means 0-15, and both men know it’s a matter of time. But Alcaraz is early on a weak second serve, wafting his return over the baseline …only for much better one to seize control of the next rally, a backhand to each corner keeping Musetti on the bike and earning 15-30, soon 15-40; the break which secured the first set was a proper heel to the solar plexus. Sure enough, he swipes a backhand wide, Alcaraz breaks again for 5-1, and will now serve for the set, the match, the year-end world no 1 spot and Álex de Miñaur Román.
*Alcaraz 6-4 4-1 Musetti Brutal, Alcaraz drops and Musetti has no choice but to charge in; he flicks back a winner, but that’ll have taken even more out of him, and the advantage is quickly seized back via huge serve and pataway volley. But look at that! Musetti zetzes a forehand winner down the line then, asked to chase another drop, it sits up and he slaps a winner to raise two break points of his own! I did not see this coming, but a serve is followed by a +1 forehand to the corner, eradicating the first, then a netted return does for the second, Alcaraz finding big deliveries when he needs them. Another then makes him advantage, and a loopy forehand that drops long hands over the consolidation. The soon-to-be year-end no 1 is two games away – and so is Alex de Minaur, the semi-final spot nearly his. Sport!
Alcaraz 6-4 3-1 Musetti* A luscious walk-in drop makes 0-15 and there’s a what-can-you-do air of resignation about Musetti now; an error donates 0-30, and the match is there for Alcaraz, ere and nar. Yup, he just about gets to his next return and the Italian, exhausted, tries a drop because he’s not got another booming groundstroke in him; it hits the net, but had it not, it was coming back with interest. Another big forehand is soon upon him, though, and it secures the break to love. This is as good as over.
*Alcaraz 6-4 2-1 Musetti There some kind of issue with the cube/screen thing above the court, but we keep going, Alcaraz, I’m sure, mad for a swift hold to get Musetti serving and under pressure again. At 15-0, though, there are cheers from the crowd when his errs, but of course it’s redeemed with an ace, then a gorgeous forehand angle, so acute, raises game point, and the hold is then secured via netted return. This is one-way traffic now; can Musetti hang in there?
Alcaraz 6-4 1-1 Musetti* Alcaraz makes 0-15 and let’s not forget, a win tonight means he’s the year-end world no 1. But a netted forehand gives Musetti 15-all, a gift very much needed but one which emphasises the point that the match is not on his racket. Then, as if to prove the point, Muse’eh goes long on the forehand, his second serve having been assaulted; a much better first delivery takes us to 3o-all. And though Musetti soon raises game point, another error takes us to deuce, and having barely conceded a point on serve in the first set, now every one he wins is a ruckus. At advantage, a sliced backhand drifts long, a swatted one does too – Alcaraz is, I think, targeting that wing – but he then thwacks long himself, and back to deuce we go. Musetti must be feeling this, goodness me, so you’ve got to admire the way he then closes out, for the hold which keeps him in the match.
*Alcaraz 6-4 1-0 Musetti It’s a long way back from here for Musetti, who must surely be feeling the pace and, as we said before, the ability of Alcaraz to up it when he needs is uncanny and disconcerting, making a mockery of opponents emptying the tank just to stick with him. He holds to love for 1-0, and these are suddenly scary hours for the home favourite; who’d be surprised if he was broken again, immediately?
Summary
Alex de Minaur beat Taylor Fritz 7-6 (3) 6-3 to keep alive his hopes of making it through to the last four.
The Australian had lost his opening two matches in the round-robin phase, which left him needing a straight-sets victory against Fritz, the American sixth seed, to still have a chance of progressing from the Jimmy Connors group.
As a result of De Minaur’s victory, Alcaraz – who is now just one win away from ensuring he will retain his world No 1 ranking ahead of Jannik Sinner at the end of the year – saw his semi-final place secured.
De Minaur had slipped to a three-set defeat against Musetti on Tuesday night, which left his chances of further progress in the balance.
“I have dealt with a fair bit of heartbreak recently, so it was good to finally get a win here in Turin,” said De Minaur. “It [defeat against Musetti] was a tough pill to swallow, but I didn’t overthink today.
“I committed to what I needed to do. There were some tough moments out there, but I continued to back myself.
“Whether it worked or didn’t, I was going to leave everything out there today and I ended up with a really good match from the start to the end.” PA Media
Carlos Alcaraz takes the first set against Lorenzo Musetti 6-4
Alcaraz 6-4 Musetti* And he doesn’t get one to begin with, but hitting from the back of the court and giving the ball air, he provokes the error, Alcaraz overhitting. But a Musetti mistake invites the spaniard into the game at 30-15 … so he annihilates an ace … only to swat an inside-out forehand wide. At 40-30, Alcaraz has a sniff, and he quickly turns it into a snort, a decent get from the corner, after a net-cord changed the flight of the ball, bringing him back into the point that he eventually finishes at the net; deuce. And when handed a second serve, though it’s not a bad one, of course Alcaraz flashes a forehand return cross-court that breaks the sideline for a clean winner then, at the start of the next rally, he nails his return and has Musetti at the net … only to net the pass. That is a major oversight, the set was there for him and I don’t think anyone, his opponent included, expected him to miss. But he’s starting to get after the serve, saving game point with a telling return and buggy-whip forehand at net, then doing absurd things to stick in the next rally, a moon-ball on the stretch landing just inside the baseline, before, eventually, Musetti hits his 84th winner of the point, and finally, it’s too good, the crowd losing their collective mind. Another second serve, though, is given the treatment, the point finished with a skidding volley, racket-face pretty much horizontal, then the Italian frames one and Alcaraz has set point again, where once he was down 40-15. Nervous moments and, again with Musetti caught at the net, Alcaraz tries one pass, it comes, back, then goes for a lob, and though it comes back thanks to a leaping, twisting backhand overhead, his next shot incites the error, an inside-out forehand that lands wide, and after an 11-minute game, he takes a first set that, like many played by the two best players in the world, was even until it wasn’t.
*Alcaraz 5-4 Musetti Another straightforward hold meaning Musetti must now do likewise to stay in the set. He’ll be wanting some first serves.
Alcaraz 4-4 Musetti* Like various of other matches this week, this looks like it might require a tiebreaker or two. That may be because the best players are good servers, but they’re also good returners, so perhaps it’s because the court is so fast. Musetti records his second love-game in a row and, as we reach the business end of the set, pressure increases.
*Alcaraz 4-3 Musetti Coaxing a forehand into the corner, Alcaraz makes 30-0, but a forehand error, the ball hit too hard, takes us to 30-all. But well in the next rally following a good return, Musetti gets his feet wrong and wafts a backhand wide, then the Spaniard runs around his own backhand to punish a forehand winner down the line.
Alcaraz 3-3 Musetti* Offered a slow second serve, Alcaraz spanks his backhand return just long – that’s a wasted opportunity. Musetti, though, learns his lesson, upping the pace next time he has to deliver a second time – the ball doesn’t come back, and the game is quickly secured. So far, though Alcaraz is the more threatening player, this is a pretty even contest.
*Alcaraz 3-2 Musetti A much better drop makes Alcaraz 30-0 and an overhead raises game point – Musetti is struggling to penetrate, and when a forehand spins long, the hold is in the books. So far, the world no 1 has only dropped two points on serve.
Alcaraz 2-2 Musetti* A squash shot drops just wide, giving Alcaraz 0-15, but a return thrashed long levels the game. And have a look! Stetching to block back a forehand return, he stops in the rally, then clouts a forehand winner cross-court; Musetti quickly responds for 30-all. Then off they go again, thwacking from the back, until Alcaraz tries a drop, but it bounces pretty high, it’s retrieved, and the resulting lob drop long. But Musetti can’t close it out, an error taking us to deuce, and the first pressure-point of the evening; an ace down the T relaxes things, and another decent delivery is returned into the net, securing a massive hold.
*Alcaraz 2-1 Musetti Alcaraz nets a backhand for 15-all, but an inside-out forehand to the corner makes 30-15, before a point he dominates gets dicey when Musetti slices low over the net; Alcaraz, though, responds well, and quickly secures his hold.
Alcaraz 1-1 Musetti* Shouts from the crowd as Muse’eh, to give him his Mancunian name, prepares to serve, and cheers when Alcaraz overhits. Then, as Berrettini predicted, a battle of drops sent across the face of the net, the Italian’s second effort dropping just wide. No matter, a big serve makes 30-15, a service winner raises game point, and another unreturned delivery levels us up. That’s a good start from the local boy.
*Alcaraz 1-0 Musetti (*denotes server) Alcaraz makes 15-0, then Musetti does what we said he needs to, getting after a second serve to deflect a backhand winner down the line; the crowd enjoy it. But a service winner follows and the game is quickly closed out thereafter.
Alcaraz to serve, ready … play.
Also going on:
Breaking: Sam Matterface just referred to “Ebz Eze”.
Of course my wife ordered the shopping to arrive, then went to a work dinner. But it’s in, you’ll be relieved to learn, and they’re still knocking up.
Alcaraz, meantime, looks focused. He’ll not be taking it easy tonight, I’m sure.
Out comes Musetti, the crowd giving it loads. How much does he have left in his legs?
The players are walking through the tunnel and will soon be with us. There’s bare noise and strobes.
Mario Berrettini reckons Alcaraz, who loves his drops, might struggle with Musetti’s touch, but he’s reaching. We shall see.
Alcaraz hasn’t played that well so far this week, but he’s played well enough. When Fritz put him under pressure, he responded just in time, and whenever he’s in trouble, there’s the sense he can find a level his opponent cannot. Which is characteristic of the best on any sport: the ability to beat top players having their best day.
Musetti has managed it once, but that was in 2022; he’s lost six on the spin since then, most recently in the semis at Roland Garros, when he won the first set before losing the next two and retiring. I guess he has to go for his shots, looking to target the backhand and second serve, while being alert to drops, and hope Alcaraz isn’t at it because he’s already through. Thing is, if Alcaraz wins tonight, he guarantees that he’ll be the year-end world no 1, so it’s not like he’s no incentive to win.
So how does Musetti beat Alcaraz? Er…
I mean, what a turnaround.
I feel for Fritz, but it’s still beautiful.
Preamble
Good evening and welcome to the ATP Finals 2025 – day five!
I can’t remember the last time the group stages of this competition were this good. And the even better news is, we’re not done yet – not by a long chalk.
On Sunday, Alex de Minaur lost to Carlos Alcaraz then, on Tuesday, he lost to Lorenzo Musetti in front of a baying Turin crowd – the 16th time in a row he’d failed to beat a top-10 player. Victimised by his athletic limitations and already playing at his ceiling, his interview after that second match was grim viewing, a window into the agony and torment of elite sport.
If I really want to be serious about taking the next step in my career,” he said, “these matches, I can’t lose ’em. I just can’t. I mean, it feels like I’ve lost a lot of them this year. I mean, more than anything it’s getting to a point where mentally it’s killing me.
It’s something that if it doesn’t get sorted, it’s going to eat me alive. I need to get it sorted sooner rather than later. Yeah, I don’t know how many times I can deal with a loss like this one.”
Sore, right? So why am I subjecting us all to it again, before a match in which he’s not even playing? Because this afternoon, he produced one of the gutsiest displays we’ve seen this year to beat Taylor Fritz – so brilliant in losing to Alcaraz the other day – in straight sets, eliminating the American in the process and saving himself. Now, then, if Alcaraz beats Musetti – and the crowd – this evening, he’s into the last four.
Musetti, though, will not simply roll over. He’s played loads of late, spending last Sunday losing to Novak Djokovic in an epic Athens final, but somehow he’s still going, his comeback against the aforementioned Demon so unlikely it felt pre-ordained – especially when he ended the contest with a barely believable winner which defied the laws of physics and sent the arena stratospheric.
Doing something similar against the world no 1, though, is a different thing. But it’s going to be very special watching him – and the crowd – try.
Play: 8.30pm local, 7.30pm GMT
