- Roland Garros Qualifying Draws and Schedule for Tuesday, May 17th
- Roland Garros Qualifying Draws and Schedule for Monday, May 16th
- Djokovic builds momentum for French Open 2022 with sixth Rome Masters Tennis title
- Novak’s Back: Djokovic Beats Tsitsipas for Sixth Rome Crown
- Rome ATP and WTA Draws and Schedule for Sunday, May 15th
- Stefanos Tsitsipas Defeats Alexander Zverev to Reach Maiden Rome Final
- Iga Swiatek Scores 26th Straight Win, Sets up Rome Semifinal vs. Sabalenka
- Rome ATP and WTA Draws and Schedule for Saturday, May 14th
- Foot injury returns for Rafa Nadal in three-set loss to Shapovalov at Rome Masters tennis
- Rome ATP and WTA Draws and Schedule for Friday, May 13th
- Naomi Osaka Splits from IMG To Form New Management Firm
- Ricky’s picks for the Rome Tennis third round: Djokovic vs. Wawrinka and Nadal vs. Shapovalov
- Rome ATP and WTA Draws and Schedule for Thursday, May 12th
- Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Leads List of Roland Garros Wild Card Recipients
- Ricky’s tennis picks for Wednesday at the Rome Masters, including Nadal vs. Isner
Musetti Wins Three-Set Thriller Over Schwartzman in Acapulco Tennis, Faces Tiafoe Next
- Updated: March 17, 2021

By Ricky Dimon
Last season suggested that 2021 could be Lorenzo Musetti’s year.
The Italian teenager started to make a name for himself in 2020, rising from No. 360 to No. 128 in the rankings thanks in part to an impressive run on home soil at the Rome Masters. He upset Stan Wawrinka and reached the third round as a qualifier. Musetti also made a semifinal appearance at an ATP 250 in Sardinia and he captured a Challenger title in Forli.
Now 19 years old, Musetti is back in the headlines at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel–a 500-point event in Acapulco. After also qualifying for this draw, the world No. 120 maintained momentum by beating third seed Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 for the first top-10 win over his career. Musetti survived late drama in this first-round showdown to cross the finish line after two hours and 22 minutes on Tuesday night.

After splitting the first two sets, Musetti seized leads of 4-0 and 5-1 in the decider over Schwartzman–a recent champion on the clay courts of Buenos Aires. However, it was far from over. The ninth-ranked Argentine saved three match points while serving at 1-5, fought off another to one at 2-5, and then held easily for 4-5. Musetti missed a fifth match point after an incredible rally on his serve in the final game, but he finally capitalized on his sixth chance when Schwartzman netted a backhand.

“Of course behind (the scenes) there is a lot of work, a lot of sacrifice,” Musetti noted. “In the end there were some tears. I’m really proud of myself…. At the beginning I was a little bit nervous. He broke me, then I broke him and I started to move a little bit better and was a little bit more relaxed. My forehand was the key. He’s a great player, but tonight I gave one of my best matches ever.
“I was born on clay–in Italy–but I’ve been feeling really good since the first day in Acapulco. I like the conditions. I think I’m going to play better and better every day…. Now I’m going to work harder and focus on the next days.”
Next up for Musetti is Frances
Tiafoe, who outlasted fellow American Brandon Nakashima in a third-set
tiebreaker.
Other winners on Tuesday in Acapulco were Stefanos Tsitsipas, Fabio Fognini,
Milos Raonic, Miomir Kecmanovic, Grigor Dimitrov, Cameron Norrie, and Tallon
Griekspoor.
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator.