Paris – Lorenzo Musetti used his sleek one-handed backhand and sprint-sliding court reports to reach his first semifinal at the French Open, defeating Frances Tiafoe for the second time in the Grand Slam Championship, 6-2, 4-6, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2, in the same match, he won the Green Medal at last year’s Olympics.
After the game, Musetti, a 23-year-old Italian, rolled up the right sleeve of the green shirt and bent his biceps.
He will face defending champions Carlos Alcaraz or Tommy Paul on Friday for the championship.
No. 8 seed Musetti and No. 1 Jannik Sinner (Fourthfinals on Wednesday) face Alexander Bublik in the quarterfinals – two Italian men’s quarterfinalists have provided for the first time in Roland-Garros since 1973.
Tiafoe is also part of his national rare achievement: He and Paul are the first Americans to enter Paris in Paris since Andre Agassi in 2003 and the first duo since Jim Courier and Pete Sampras in 1996.
In the women’s action, three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek and first-place Aryna Sabalenka both won consecutive showdowns to the semi-finals on Thursday.
Tiafoe, 27, from Maryland, ranked 15th and did not put down a set on his way to the quarterfinals. But he has not completed the mission of Musetti, a semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 2024.
Tiafoe wore a chain on the pendant in capital letters, missed all eight first balls in his initial service game and sent backhand width to give Musetti a 2-0 lead. Tiafo looked at his coach David Witt and complained about the wind.
“He didn’t start as he wanted, but today’s performance was really complicated,” Musetti said. “It was so windy that it was hard to hit correctly.”
At the end of the game, Musetti scored more winners, 44-33, with fewer unmandated turnovers, 51-32.
Still, when two-time U.S. Open Semi-Finalist Tiafoe played a forehand, even one game in one game, he roared and shouted, “Let’s go! Let’s go!”
In that game, Musetti was warned for kicking a tennis ball that accidentally hit a clue. Unlike most top tennis matches that rely on electronic line phones, Roland-Garros still has humans in court to decide if the shooting is landed.
The focus of the game is Game 6 in the third set.
Musetti reached out to the doubles alley near the net and shot at a seemingly impossible angle. Then Tiafoe did the same thing, bringing his baseline closer. Musetti ran around and twisted his back, twisting his body somehow to throw the low ball back in a half-wave way. It worked, though, and Tiafoe – perhaps taken aback, seeing that it wasn’t over yet – got an awkward, shoulder volley.
It shocked his way when he broke in the last game. In the 12-stroke exchange, Tiafoe tried the unwise and tortured throw-offs that quick Musetti could achieve, reminiscent of a down-line backhand champion. Now it’s his turn to rush the air.
The post-match interviewer told him he had an elegant game, and Musetti joked: “I mean, we are Italians. We are graceful.”
He was 13-4 in his career at the French Open, with three losses being the number one opponent – Novak Djokovic twice and Alcaraz once. This time in Paris, the only way he will need to deal with the highest ranked man is if it is his friend, the sinner, stood online on Sunday and won the trophy.
