Lorenzo Musetti has praised the achievements of Davis Cup teammate Jannik Sinner but admits his surge in success has added more pressure on him.
The world No.10 is the second-highest-ranked Italian player on the men’s Tour and has reached the quarter-finals or better at every Grand Slam tournament. So far this season, Musetti has posted an 11-6 record, reaching the final of the Hong Kong Open. However, he has also been affected by injury during this period, with a leg injury forcing him to retire from his quarter-final match against Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open. More recently, he was forced to withdraw from Miami due to an arm issue.
Musetti is playing during the golden era of Italian tennis, with the country currently having seven players in the top 100 and staging numerous high-level events, including the ATP Finals. Driving the surge in success is four-time Grand Slam winner Sinner, who has achieved numerous firsts for his country in the sport. This includes topping the ATP rankings, winning a singles title at Wimbledon and winning major titles on multiple surfaces.
“Jannik has certainly blazed a truly new trail, if we want to call it that, especially in Italian tennis,” Musetti told Eurosport Italy.
“What he’s doing and what he’s already accomplished is something no one in Italy has ever done before. Just look at the tournaments and his ranking positions—he’s the world number one.”
On the other hand, the 24-year-old admits Sinner’s success has resulted in him receiving more scrutiny, which has affected him. The biggest criticism he faces is his lack of trophies in recent times. Musetti has two ATP titles to his name, which were both won in 2022. Since then, he has suffered seven consecutive losses in Tour-level finals.
“Let’s just say that the standards of judgment among the public, fans, and insiders have risen significantly,” he explained.
“Obviously, that’s something I feel. Even though I was ranked number 5 in the world, reached the quarterfinals in every Grand Slam, and made two Grand Slam semifinals, the first thing I hear is that Lorenzo Musetti hasn’t won a title in four years.
“That’s definitely something that’s on my mind a bit. Then there have been so many finals over the years, so it’s not that easy to be the runner-up. But you keep going.”
Support for Grand Slam reform
One of the hot topics currently in tennis surrounds the argument over Grand Slam prize money. Recently, a group of top players co-signed a letter sent to the French Open arguing that they deserve a higher share of the event’s revenue, which is estimated to currently be in the range of 14-16%. Women’s world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka told reporters this week that she believes the idea of a boycott at future majors is possible if an agreement can’t be reached.
Musetti is one of those who signed the latest letter. He describes the discussions as a ‘long process’ but believes progress will be made if players continue to show unity.
“It’s an issue we’ve all been addressing together for some time now: the leaders of the two rankings (ATP and WTA) are trying to apply some pressure to make progress in terms of fairness,” he commented.
“I believe that the more united the group is, the more our voices will be heard, and perhaps the more results we’ll see. It takes patience; we know it’s a long process. We have time on our side, since we’re a fairly young group with fairly clear ideas.”
These calls will have no impact on the distribution of prize money from this year’s French Open, which has already been set. However, eyes are on Wimbledon to see how it will address the topic of giving players a bigger share of its revenue later this year.
Musetti’s immediate focus is on the Italian Open, where he is defending semi-final points from last year. He is seeded eighth in the draw.
