"Something I dreamed when I was a kid" - Novak Djokovic-conqueror Lorenzo Musetti recalls Monte-Carlo win over Serb

Lorenzo Musetti, set to play at the Davis Cup Finals representing Italy, recalled his win over Novak Djokovic at the Monte-Carlo Masters earlier this year. He that it was something he had dreamed of as a kid.

Seeded No. 16 at the Masters 1000 event, the Italian downed top seed Djokovic in the third round in three sets, his first win over the World No. 1 (three losses). However, Musetti went on to lose in the very next round, falling to compatriot Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals.

At his press conference ahead of the Davis Cup Finals, Musetti admitted that the win over Novak Djokovic in Monte-Carlo is the best win of his career so far and that it felt like he had reached an important goal.

Not one to rest on his laurels, though, the 21-year-old is ready to take on his next challenge - to lead his home country to triumph in Spain this week.

"Yeah, for sure has been, let's say, a good season for the clay and for grass season. Of course I didn't end up the season as we wished, but I think it's part of my growing. A lot of things changed, a lot of first times for me. So for sure Novak has been the best win of my career so far, and it's something that I really, you know, I dreamed when I was a kid, so it was sort of reaching a goal for me," Musetti said.

"Now I feeling ready for this event. I'm happy to finish the year with these Finals here in Malaga," he added.

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Lorenzo Musetti's Italy could face Novak Djokovic's Serbia at Davis Cup Finals 2023

Novak Djokovic

Team Italy are drawn to face the Netherlands in the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup Finals, following which they could take on either Serbia or Great Britain in the semifinals. The other four teams in contention at the tournament this week are: Australia, Finland, Canada and Czech Republic.

Djokovic has arrived in Spain for the tournament, where he joined his compatriots Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic, Dusan Lajovic and Hamad Medjedovic. The 24-time Grand Slam champion is in red-hot form, having won the Paris Masters and the season-ending ATP Finals in the lead-up to the event.

Lorenzo Musetti, meanwhile, will be joined by his teammates Jannik Sinner (who lost to the World No. 1 in the final of the ATP Finals last week), Matteo Arnaldi, Lorenzo Sonego and Simone Bolelli at the Davis Cup.