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Tennis fans recently reacted to Taylor Fritz's defeat against Lorenzo Musetti at the 2024 Monte-Carlo Masters.
Musetti secured his 100th tour-level win by defeating Fritz 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the clay court tournament. This victory improved Lorenzo Musetti's head-to-head record against Fritz to 1-2.
Fans were taken aback by the American's unexpected loss in his opening match at the Monte-Carlo Masters, especially considering his semifinal run last year. They took to social media to share their surprise as well as their disappointment.
A fan mocked Fritz's arrival in Monaco on a luxury boat only to exit in the first round.
"Lol he arrived in a yacht and everything. Just to get sniped in r1," a fan posted on Reddit.
One fan commented on the "random" nature of both Musetti and Fritz's performances, while another fan pointed out the latter's inconsistent form after a strong start to the 2024 season.
"That was one of the most random performances ever from both players. They just kept turning on and off. But still expected Fritz to get a set at least. Defending none of those point will really hurt him. From SF to this early exit! Must be fuming!" the fan posted.
"Very weird year for Fritz so far. Started very good and looked to be playing some of his best tennis but now he can't buy a good performance," a fan posted.
Another fan expressed disappointment at Fritz's defeat, particularly following his quarterfinal runs at the 2023 US Open and the 2024 Australian Open.
"It's weird how Fritz for like a year was generally quite consistent in ATP tournaments even as he did very poorly in Slams which kept him in the top 10. Now that he's finally made back-to-back Slam QFs, he can't win at ATP tournaments anymore lol," the fan posted.
"Fritz is the American version of [Casper] Ruud. He is not a bad player, nor is a top one. His 5th position in the standings was due to 2022, which was an anomaly and now he is regressing to the mean. Top 15, but not top 10 is the right place for him now," the fan wrote.
Meanwhile, a fan stated that Lorenzo Musetti has a knack to perform well at the Monte-Carlo Masters. He recalled that the Italian had ended Novak Djokovic's campaign in the third round of last year's event.
"This wasn't that high quality of a match IMO. I'd say that Musetti more played 'less bad' than Fritz than that he played well," a fan posted.
"Lorenzo always performs better in Monte Carlo. In 2022 he beat FAA (Felix Auger-Aliassime) in R2 and last year he made quarters and beat Nole. Let's hope for a rematch again this year. Not the best match from Taylor, too many UEs," the fan posted.
Lorenzo Musetti inches closer to potential clash with Novak Djokovic after victory over Taylor Fritz
With his won over Taylor Fritz in the first round at the 2024 Monte-Carlo Masters, Lorenzo Musetti has a chance to potentially face off against Novak Djokovic in the tournament.
Musetti's opponent in the second round will be the winner of the match between Arthur Fils and Adrian Mannarino. Meanwhile, top seed Djokovic will kick off his campaign in the second round, where he will face either Russian Roman Safiullin or Spanish qualifier Jaume Munar.
Should Lorenzo Musetti emerge victorious in his second round match and Djokovic also triumph in his opener, the two players will meet in the third round. This would provide Djokovic with an opportunity to seek redemption for his loss (4-6, 7-5, 6-4) to Musetti in the third round of last year's Monte-Carlo Masters.
