Lorenzo Musetti has admitted that he's banking on the Rome crowd support at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament. The Italian star has not been at his best since suffering a right abductor injury at the Australian Open.
He has not reached a tournament semi-final this year, as he heads to the Italian Open.
Italian tennis fans are known as one of the most raucous crowds on tour. They are unrelenting in their support for their home players, especially when a home tournament is played. Last year, Alex de Minaur complained about his struggles with them after losing to Musetti at the ATP Finals in Turin.
The Rome Masters is regarded as the second-largest ATP tournament in Italy, after the ATP Finals in Turin. Fans often come out in mass to support their home stars in singles and doubles categories. Last year, they helped Musetti reach the semi-finals of the tournament for the first time in his career.
Musetti recorded some incredible victories, including one against Alexander Zverev en route to the semi-finals. It was Carlos Alcaraz, the eventual champion of the tournament, who defeated Musetti. However, this year, Musetti sees his chance of having another good run as defending champion Alcaraz would not be competing at the event.
The Italian star is currently ranked World No.11, having dropped out of the top 10 following his poor displays at the Monte Carlo Masters and Madrid Open. Should he fail to defend his last year's semi-finals run, he's likely to drop out of the top 15. In an interview with Ubitennis, Musetti reflected on the support he has received from the Rome crowd:
Without them, I probably wouldn't have won that match against De Minaur in the final. And when you handle their support correctly, it's easy to get emotional. But because expectations are lower this year than last year, and I didn't get the same results, I think I'm more relaxed.And I will also be able to regain confidence thanks to the fans. I would like to feel some affection; the human warmth that Rome radiates can be an important source of support that helps me compete better.
At the Monte Carlo Masters, where Musetti finished as runner-up last year, he crashed out in the second round last month after losing to Valentin Vacherot. Nonetheless, he blamed the lack of good preparation for the loss, as he had just played one match on returning from injury before losing to Vacherot.
Lorenzo Musetti's last good run on clay came at the Barcelona Open, where he reached the quarter-finals, which was also his first quarter-finals since the Australian Open. At the Australian Open, he was two sets up before sustaining an injury against Novak Djokovic, which led him to withdraw from the tournament.
Before arriving in Rome, Musetti reached the round of 16 of the Madrid Open. He defeated former top 10 Hubert Hurkacz en route to the fourth round. During the aforementioned interview, Musetti compared the conditions in Rome to those he experienced at the Madrid Open. He stressed that the court at the Italian Open is slow:
I only played yesterday in Pietrangeli, today I think on Centre Court. We'll see if it changes depending on the court. It's slower than Madrid, where altitude makes the ball faster, and Monte Carlo is more similar here because it's at sea level. I don't see many differences compared to previous years.
Musetti is in the same quarter of the Italian Open draw as Djokovic. He's projected to face either Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard or a qualifier in the second round before a likely contest against Francisco Cerundolo. Should he reach the round of 16, he might face Djokovic for the second time this season.
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