Paris: A raft of withdrawals has swept through the Olympic tennis line-up, but nothing was going to stop Lorenzo Musetti from taking part in Paris — setting in motion a last-minute dash to the French capital.
The Italian played the final of a warm-up event in Umag, Croatia, late on Saturday night, losing the match and not getting to bed until well past midnight.
A few hours later, his sleep curtailed by an early alarm clock, and Musetti was on his way to the airport with his first-round match at the Olympics scheduled for late afternoon at Roland Garros.
Fortunately for the 22-year-old Musetti, the frantic journey proved worthwhile as he brushed aside French veteran Gael Monfils in straight sets.
“This morning, we flew early from Pula, at 8am, so we woke up around 6am. When I arrived at the hotel, I had lunch with the Italian women’s volleyball team and then I managed to get a 30-minute nap,” Musetti explained.
“When I got here, Jessica Pegula was already about to (win her) match, so I practised about 15 minutes and got on court for the match.
“It has been an intense day, so I believe I deserve some rest now.”
Musetti was grateful to his partner Veronica, who gave birth to the couple’s first child in March, for making sure everything was ready to go after he lost the Umag final to Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo.
“Last night, the match finished around 10.30pm, so by the time I did press, shower and cool down it wasn’t until 1.30am that I got to bed. I am lucky that my partner is a saint and she had packed already,” he said.
Musetti — beaten in the first round of the Tokyo Games three years ago — said victory Sunday was the ideal tonic for his Umag sorrow.
“This was a very important match for me because it confirms the good moment I am living and, most of all, for how I overcame the tiredness and disappointment from last night’s final.
“I knew it could lead to some frustration, but it was the opposite instead.”
Cerundolo also faced a similar race against time, making short work of Chile’s Marcelo Tomas Barrios Vera to reach the Olympics second round.
Murray advances
Andy Murray kept his tennis career alive in thrilling fashion on Sunday when he and partner Dan Evans saved five match points in their opening doubles match.
The former world No 1 and three-time Grand Slam title winner teamed up with Evans and clinched a 2-6, 7-6 (7/5), 11-9 win over Japan’s Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori.
Murray, 37, a two-time singles gold medallist at the Olympics in 2012 and 2016, will retire from the sport once his Olympics is over.
