Lorenzo Musetti topples Stefanos Tsitsipas again at Madrid Open

Lorenzo Musetti knocked out world No. 18 Stefanos Tsitsipas with a 7-5, 7-6(3) win to reach the Round of 16 at the Madrid Open. The Italian narrowed the head-to-head to 2–5 and continues his excellent clay form with seven wins in his last eight matches, including a run to the Monte-Carlo Masters final just a couple of weeks ago—where he also beat Tsitsipas.

Musetti also climbed to world No. 9 in the live rankings and could break into the Top 10 for the first time in his career, after making the Madrid Round of 16 for the first time in his career.

The match started strongly for Tsitsipas, who earned an early break to go up 3–0. With a 5–1 head-to-head advantage (4–1 on clay), and the memory of letting a lead slip in Monte-Carlo, the former world No. 3 had three break points in the sixth game to take full control. But Musetti held firm.

Despite trailing 2–5, Musetti mounted a superb comeback, winning five straight games to take the set 7–5. He converted two of three break chances and saved a set point at 4–5. The 23-year-old was sharper in key moments, saving 4/5 break points and converting 2/3.

The second set remained on serve for much of the way, with both players relying on solid first serves—though Tsitsipas landed just 59% of his first serves compared to Musetti’s 89%. At 4–4, Tsitsipas faced 0–40 but managed to escape and hold for 5–4.

Eventually, it went to a tie-break, where Musetti raced ahead to a 6–0 lead. Tsitsipas saved three match points but couldn’t avoid defeat, falling in straight sets for the second time in a row against the Italian. Musetti will now face sixth seed Alex de Minaur, who beat Denis Shapovalov in straight sets.