By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Tennis requires time administration.
After his opening-round Monte-Carlo win, Novak Djokovic mentioned he wants extra time to acclimate to clay.
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Lorenzo Musetti will attempt to disrupt Djokovic’s timing when the pair sq. off in Monte-Carlo on Thursday.
Asked if he can exploit the very fact Djokovic has performed only one clay-court match the previous 11 months, Musetti says even when the world No. 1 is underprepared he can nonetheless be overwhelming.
“For sure everyone needs matches when we change surface, but he’s still No. 1 in the world,” Musetti advised the media in Monte-Carlo after crushing compatriot Luca Nardi 6-0, 6-0. “He started the year I think pretty well, winning another Australian Open, you know, winning a lot of matches.
“Even if being out for a month or much more, he is nonetheless Novak. So I’ve to be able to beat the No. 1 on this planet, not one man who wants to arrange the clay season. So I feel I’ve to enter the courtroom with the best mentality, with the best mindset to beat the No. 1 on this planet, to not beat somebody who’s getting ready the clay season.”
Though Musetti pushed Djokovic to five sets in the 2021 Roland Garros round of 16, he still sports major scar tissue courtesy of the 35-year-old Serbian superstar. Since Musetti won the opening two sets of that 2021 meeting in Paris, Djokovic has dropped just 10 games to the artistic Italian posting a 3-0 record, including a 6-0, 6-3 beatdown in the Rolex Paris Masters indoor last fall.
Mamma Mia!
Lorenzo Musetti scores a double bagel over compatriot Nardi on the #RolexMonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/30kvktO5wF
— Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters (@ROLEXMCMASTERS) April 12, 2023
Knowing simply how dominant, Djokovic will be Musetti mentioned he has a transparent recreation plan: put together to face the world No. 1 not a man coming off a five-week layoff nonetheless discovering his ft on filth.
“So I think I have to enter the court with the right mentality, with the right mindset to beat the No. 1 in the world, not to beat someone who is preparing the clay season,” Musetti mentioned.
After a horrific begin to 2023 that noticed him fall within the first spherical in 5 of his first six tournaments, Musetti appears to be discovering type with a quarterfinal run in Marrakech final week and two high quality wins in Monte-Carlo the place he maintains a residence.
Still, Musetti is not about to pronounce his recreation utterly again simply but.
“I wouldn’t say that, because I’m still a little scared to say that I’m completely back, but for sure I feel like I’m performing pretty well with my tennis,” Musetti mentioned. “Today I was feeling every shot.
“I’m feeling actually, actually good and in bodily situation. I feel I did step ahead from the final month as a result of I labored laborious. Even with final season, the final months, I feel I labored and I practiced lots, so in all probability the outcomes they’re paying off now. Hopefully the clay season could possibly be a comeback for myself.”
Photo credit score: Getty
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