Musetti beats Dimitrov to reach Acapulco semi-final, will face Tsitsipas
Italian teenager Lorenzo Musetti entered his maiden ATP Tour 500 semi-final, claiming a straight-set victory over former world number three Grigor Dimitrov in Acapulco on Thursday night. The world number 120 romped past Dimitrov 6-4, 7-6(3) to win the all-important clash. Notably, Musetti will face top-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas for a place in his first tour final. Here is more.
How did the match pan out?
Despite making a comeback from 1-4, Dimitrov lost the opening set 6-4. In the next set, he committed a string of errors, handing Musetti a triple match point. Dimitrov, who was the 2014 Acapulco champion, used all his experience and came down hard at the teenager. He saved as many as six match points before finally conceding one on Musetti's seventh opportunity.
Musetti rises to fame after a handful of matches
Playing only his 11th tour-level main draw match, Musetti has booked a berth in the Acapulco semi-final. After three back-to-back three-set wins to reach the quarter-finals, the 19-year-old showed incredible stamina and resistance to outclass Bulgaria's Dimitrov.
I try to stay focused in hard moments: Musetti
After the win, an elated Musetti said, "I feel that I really like winning and don't like losing, so I try to stay focused even in the hard moments, and I think this is the key." "Tsitsipas is one of the biggest guys on tour. It's really an honour to play with him. I think this week every day it's something more special."
Musetti to face top-seeded Tsitsipas in semis
As stated, Musetti will face top-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas, who defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 on Thursday. Tsitsipas, who is in pursuit to reach a first final this year, advanced to the semi-finals at the Australian Open in February and at Rotterdam earlier this month. Meanwhile, his opponent Musetti is through to his second career semi-final in his fourth ATP Tour main draw appearance.
