Carlos Alcaraz v Lorenzo Musetti: ATP Finals tennis – live | ATP Finals

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Musetti has managed it once, but that in 2022; heâ€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 isnâ€t at it because heâ€s already through. Thing is, if Alcaraz wins tonight, he guarantees that heâ€ll be the year-end world no 1, so itâ€s not like heâ€s no incentive to win.

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So how does Musetti beat Alcaraz? Er…

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I mean, what a turnaround.

I feel for Fritz, but itâ€s still beautiful.

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Preamble

Good evening and welcome to the ATP Finals 2025 – day five!

I canâ€t remember the last time the group stages of this competition were this good. And the even better news is, weâ€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 heâ€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 canâ€t lose â€em. I just canâ€t. I mean, it feels like Iâ€ve lost a lot of them this year. I mean, more than anything itâ€s getting to a point where mentally itâ€s killing me.

Itâ€s something that if it doesnâ€t get sorted, itâ€s going to eat me alive. I need to get it sorted sooner rather than later. Yeah, I donâ€t know how many times I can deal with a loss like this one.â€

Sore, right? So why am I subjecting us all to it again, before a match in which heâ€s not even playing? Because this afternoon, he produced one of the gutsiest displays weâ€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, heâ€s into the last four.

Musetti, though, will not simply roll over. Heâ€s played loads of late, spending last Sunday losing to Novak Djokovic in an epic Athens final, but somehow heâ€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 itâ€s going to be very special watching him – and the crowd – try.

Play: 8.30pm local, 7.30pm GMT

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