World No. 16 Lorenzo Musetti shared his thoughts after losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the Monte Carlo Masters final with a score of 6-3, 1-6, 0-6.
Musetti said, “Today, I felt the ball really well, and I had a clear understanding of what I needed to do. However, it was physically challenging. From the beginning, I tried to compensate for it by playing freely. But in the end, physical issues, fatigue, and stress accumulated over the past days and matches took over. Unfortunately, I couldn`t finish the match in the sense that I couldn`t fight to the end.”
When asked about the difficulty of playing against Alcaraz, Musetti responded, “Carlos is already a legend in this sport, even though he is younger than me. He breaks records, and you can sometimes feel his aura on the court.”
He continued, “I played a fantastic first set today and made him change something in his game. Probably, if I had been 100% physically ready, I would have been able to last longer. It`s essential to be in top shape to beat guys like him. As I said on the court, I will try to get revenge on him – hopefully soon.”
Reflecting on the tournament, Musetti stated, “I can take away a lot of positives. Of course, we are already focused on other goals and trying to be ambitious because I haven`t entered the Top 10 yet. That`s the main goal for the season right now. But we are close enough to keep fighting and dreaming.”
Musetti added, “Clay is my favorite surface, my natural habitat. This week has given me confidence, and now I will be more ambitious at tournaments like this one or Roland Garros. This is an important part of the season, and I don`t have many points to defend. So, hopefully, I will be ready to do something great. I feel that my level is sufficient to achieve something on clay.”
Musetti`s coach mentioned, “This morning, during warm-up, Lorenzo felt a problem with his quadriceps.”
