Musetti ends Italy's 100-year wait, defeats Auger-Aliassime in Paris battle for bronze

Lorenzo Musetti maintained his excellent form on Saturday with a hard-earned victory against Felix Auger-Aliassime in the bronze-medal match at the Paris Olympics.

The 22-year-old Italian regained his composure after a mid-match lapse to seal a 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 triumph in the bronze-medal clash on Court Philippe Chatrier. Musetti clinched a decisive break in the eighth game of the deciding set to prevail in a match of fine margins and become the first Italian tennis player to win an Olympic medal since Uberto de Morpugo at the 1924 Paris Olympics.

BRONZE MEDAL FOR ITALY ??@Lorenzo1Musetti defeats Auger-Aliassime 6-4 1-6 6-3 to win the Men's Singles Bronze Medal!#Paris2024 | #tennis | #Olympics pic.twitter.com/dNDKxdhomx

Musetti was less clinical than Auger-Aliassime with his chances — the Italian converted three of 12 break points he earned, while the Canadian won three of four — but he stayed mentally composed to pull clear in the final stages of the match. With his two-hour, 17-minute win, he levelled his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against Auger-Aliassime at 3-3.

The two-time ATP Tour champion Musetti defeated home favourite Gael Monfils, Mariano Navone, Taylor Fritz and defending Olympic champion Alexander Zverev in Paris, before falling to top seed Novak Djokovic in the last four and entering the bronze-medal match against Auger-Aliassime.

The No. 16 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Musetti has won 22 of 28 matches since the start of Roland Garros in late May. That tally includes runs to the championship match at ATP Tour events at the Queen's Club and in Umag, and he also reached his maiden Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon last month.

Asked how he planned to celebrate his Olympic medal, the Italian gave a fitting answer: “I’ve been eating plain pasta and chicken for three months, basically,” he said, “so I think eating a pizza is the least I can do tonight!”

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