Novak Djokovic’s Victory over Lorenzo Musetti Sets Wimbledon Rematch with Carlos Alcaraz- Wimbledon 2024
Novak Djokovic will square off against Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final for the straight second year in a row at Wimbledon 2024 final.
Lorenzo Musetti put up a predictable and somewhat strong second set, but the seven-time champion was able to weather the storm and win the match 6-4, 7-6 (2), 6-4.
In the Wimbledon men’s singles final nine years ago, Novak Djokovic faced Roger Federer at the All England Club. On that occasion, it was the second time in a row that they had crossed paths. When Djokovic was the younger player and the reigning champion back in 2015, he was eager to defeat the man who had already won Wimbledon seven times.
There will be a repeat men’s singles final at Wimbledon this year for the first time since then. Now that he has seven titles under his belt, Djokovic is keen to reclaim the top spot at Wimbledon by defeating Carlos Alcaraz, the younger player who dethroned him a year ago.
Djokovic remarked, “Obviously, I know that Roger has eight Wimbledon titles.” “I have seven in my possession. There’s history at stake. And the 25th Grand Slam possibility. Naturally, it’s a tremendous source of motivation, but there are also a lot of demands and expectations.
“Even though I’m 37 and playing against players who are 21 years old, I still expect to win most of the matches that I play, and people expect me to win, like, 99 percent of the matches that I play,” the 37-year-old said.
“To stay on par with Carlos, Jannik, Sascha, (Daniil), or any of those guys, I have to always go out there and give it my all on the court.”
In today’s semifinal, Djokovic had to endure an anticipated and moderately strong second-set storm from Lorenzo Musetti in order to advance to his 37th Grand Slam singles final. However, he eventually took control of the match and won it 6-4, 7-6 (2), 6-4 in two hours and 48 minutes. Remember that Djokovic underwent knee surgery just five weeks prior.
“I may not have moved as well in the first few rounds, but I was still finding my freedom to move,” Djokovic said. After that, especially in the third and fourth rounds, I realized that I wasn’t thinking about my knee. In reality, I’m playing for free and doing my best.
One noteworthy figure from today’s game that could affect the outcome on Sunday is: 43 of 56 points were won by Djokovic at the net, including an incredible 16 of 17 points on serve and volley. According to Musetti, “He demonstrated that he’s really in great shape, not just in tennis, but physically as well.”
There are people who are fond of Musetti at every tennis club, park, hotel, and private court. These athletes thrive on the opportunity to produce champions who are worthy of a highlight show. They frequently play on emotions in the hopes that the momentum created by a single placement would propel them to success.
However, as the astute tactician Brad Gilbert once informed me, “There is no three-point line in tennis.” On a more serious note, Musetti makes a lot of amazing shots but not enough excellent ones—that is, not enough to seriously challenge Djokovic in a match that goes to the wire.
At Roland Garros, Musetti has taken Djokovic to five sets twice. The decider had worn him out totally in both cases. The endeavor is considerably more difficult on grass, where Musetti has less time to complete his strokes. Give Musetti credit for his outstanding run to the semifinals and his moments of excellence against Djokovic.
Also Read: Lorenzo Musetti Triumphs Over Taylor Fritz to Reach First Grand Slam Semifinal at Wimbledon 2024
Early in the second set, Musetti unleashed a frenzy, taking a 3-1 lead after hitting a stunning crosscourt backhand passing shot. Musetti stated, “I think there’s a great matchup between the two sides.” Intermittently captivating aspects of Musetti-Djokovic matches are their backhand-to-backhand exchanges.
Djokovic’s two-handed crosscourt backhand is his go-to shot. Most of those times, the other player is a fellow two-hander who possesses a strong drive of his own. It’s obviously not as good as Djokovic’s. In almost every rally, the see-saw eventually swings in Djokovic’s direction.
However, Musetti’s one-hander can be played in a variety of ways, from thunderous drives that can go through or off the court to slices that are cut crosscourt or curled down the line, and it can even occasionally drop shot.
Djokovic described him as a difficult opponent to play against because of his defensive slice. “What talent he has. In a way, you have no idea what to anticipate. Every shot might be unique.
However, Musetti threw away his serve at love while serving at 3-2. Even though Djokovic overcame a set point at 5-6, 30-40, and once in the tiebreaker, his unwavering proficiency in such circumstances proved decisive. He took the lead immediately, 3-0, and ended it quickly, 7-2. It was quite difficult to imagine this match not finishing in straight sets when Djokovic broke Musetti to open the third.
Musetti remarked, “I think his tennis really fit very well on this surface.” Particularly with regard to his reappearance, which is almost comedic in nature. I must admit that the way he was returning at the end of the day was extremely funny.
To his credit, Musetti overcame deficits of 3-5, love-40, held serve, and secured a break point for 5-all in the following game. Here, Djokovic demonstrated his champion qualities with two outstanding volleys, a retrieval of a Musetti lob, and sufficient depth off the baseline to extricate a forehand that was netted. Musetti drove a backhand long two points later.
Musetti remarked, “I have to admit that I go home with a lot of positive things to bring and positive feelings.” “I’ve had two incredible weeks. It really surprised me that I was able to maintain his level of performance today. I’m happy with my performance in this competition.
Regarding Djokovic, he will participate in his ninth final here on Sunday. He has only lost twice, once against an inspired Andy Murray in 2013 and once to Alcaraz last year. Djokovic remarked, “Wimbledon just takes the best out of me and inspires me to really always show up and give it my all.”
It’s practically a marvel that he played thus well so soon after surgery. However, Djokovic could also argue—during one of his reflective moments—that his entire existence has been a miracle.
