Paris, 2 June 2024 – “Victory belongs to the most tenacious”. In capital letters the maxim of Roland Garros stands out on Philippe Chatrier, and in the night only character kept afloat Djokovic against a super Musetti. The Serbian wins 7-5, 6-7, 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 in a match that lasted well past three in the morning. With the defeat of the blue, Sinner’s chance to snatch the first position in the ranking from Nole also vanishes. However, the match was extraordinary carrarino, who held control of the game for two and a half sets, overcoming the 24-time Slam champion repeatedly, and giving the public spectacular plays. Only fatigue – managed better by the opponent – ruins the Tuscan’s dream, who collapses.
First set
A furious Musetti in the third game deceives everyone a bit. Two exceptional passers and two errors from Djokovic gave him the first break. But the dream does not last long, with the Serbian having an immediate reaction and taking back what he had stolen. Carrara’s golden arm capable of making the opponent move a lot, opening the court with the help of the serve: the percentage of first balls is very high. Match at a very high pace: Lorenzo remains aggressive with his backhand along the line, raises the trajectories and roll the ball, to leave the Serbian without any chance of attack. Two errors at 6-5 Djokovic are the drawbacks of the set: the blue immediately goes 0-30 down. From there it’s a moment for the world number 1 to close 7-5.
Second set
Carrara’s competitive tension seems to have dropped. His tennis has less pressure, he moves away from the court and the shots are less deep. A Djokovic who, to be honest, was not too brilliant took advantage of it almost immediately: he cut the exchange with the short ball several times and the break came at 3-1. The lead is one step away: 4-1. But when it seems everything already in the archive here is the blackout of the Serbian, who drops in pace and is surprised by a comeback from the blue. It’s at 4-4 that the match returns to balance and to a high level. The Serbian bends over his legs and has to unleash special shots to break through the trench in Musetti’s defense. The tie-break is the right epilogue, and the statistics smile on Lorenzo given that the blue has never conceded one to Djokovic. Musetti seems kissed by the gods, his ball is very heavy and the exchange seems to never end. At this point he is the one who cuts off the opponent’s legs with the dumps: the Serbian is astonished. The blue goes on the run 3-0 and the Serbian comes back, closing the 22-year-old Tuscan in the backhand corner. A series of back errors arrive, but just when Nole seems to have gained the upper hand, here comes the turnaround for the blue: great point from Lorenzo and forehand error from the Slam champion, the match is turning.
Third set
Generosity, class and sacrifice. Carrara’s golden arm intends to sell his life dearly: he continues his game and doesn’t give an inch, not even when he concedes break points. On the other side there is a Nole in confusion, who breaks the lead at 2-1 with seven points in a row from the blue. It’s a double break on Nole – who dropped to 20% of points obtained with the second – to give him the partial score of 6-2.
Fourth set
On the pitch, Nole is increasingly calm, overwhelmed by the Italian’s imaginative play. Anything happens: four breaks in five games, but most of it goes to the Serbian, who finds the mental energy to take the match to the fifth set. He’s not tired of winning yet.
Fifth set
The decisive set escapes the hands of a nervous Musetti, with Nole demonstrating that he knows how to manage tiredness better. So the Serbian rings a partial of 11 games to one and extinguishes the blue dream.
