"What a clown" - Fans slam Alexander Zverev after his remarks on Lorenzo Musetti's win over 'more talented' Holger Rune at French Open

Fans of Lorenzo Musetti haven't taken kindly to Alexander Zverev's assessment of the Italian's fourth-round win over Holger Rune at the 2025 French Open. Most of them suggested that Zverev's take stemmed from his straight-set loss to Musetti at the Italian Open in the buildup to Roland Garros.

On Monday, June 2, Zverev attended a press conference after securing his passage to the quarterfinals in Paris courtesy a walkover against fourth-round opponent Tallon Griekspoor. Here, he was asked if he'd seen Musetti and Rune's fourth-round match, which the Italian won 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. The German claimed he'd only watched the first set. He went on to suggest that Rune has more natural talent than Musetti.

"Both of them can play incredibly good tennis, for sure. I think right now at this very second Musetti is more stable in his tennis than Holger. I think Holger is maybe even more talented. I think he has the potential to do great great things. But I think he’s missing a bit of the stability… which Musetti has found during the clay court season. He’s been very stable this clay court season," Zverev said.

Upon noticing what Alexander Zverev had to say, Lorenzo Musetti's fans were quick to lash out at the German. Some of them recalled the Italian's 7-6(1), 6-4 victory against Zverev in the quarterfinals of the 2025 Italian Open, and opined that the ATP No. 3's remarks reflect he is yet to come to terms with the defeat in Rome.

"Well Musetti is more talented than you! How about that mate. What a clown you are," one fan wrote.

"Zverev still whinging about his loss to Musetti underrates his talent," commented another.

"Why does this dude hate Musetti so much?" one questioned.

"Musetti will punch this one next time he sees him," another fan chimed in.

"He's obsessed with Lorenzo oh my God get a life," added one.

"Novak Djokovic needs to win on Monday and save us from these press conferences. Alex Zverev when he talks is just awful. He’s still so salty Musetti owns him now #RolandGarros," weighed in yet another fan, referring to the upcoming quarterfinal clash in Paris between Zverev and Djokovic.

Zverev had also sparked outrage from Musetti's fans with his assessment of the Italian's style of play in the aftermath of their clash in Rome.

"Lorenzo Musetti depends on mistakes from opponents" - Alexander Zverev after Italian Open QF exit

Alexander Zverev (Source: Getty)

Following his straight-set loss to Lorenzo Musetti in Rome, Alexander Zverev was asked about his thoughts on the Italian's style of play. The German opined that Musetti relies heavily on his opponents making errors.

"He depends a lot on defense. He depends a lot on the mistakes from other opponents. Today was difficult for me to hit winners. It was very slow, very, very heavy," Zverev said.

The ATP No. 3's comments came under fire from fans of the Italian, with some suggesting that the German wouldn't have made similar remarks had he lost to Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner.

Lorenzo Musetti himself later issued a response, bluntly stating that Alexander Zverev himself also has the option of playing a more cautious style of tennis if he wants to. The Italian has a 3-1 lead over the German in the pair's head-to-head.

While Zverev has the daunting challenge of facing Novak Djokovic next in the quarterfinals of the French Open, Musetti will square off against Frances Tiafoe for a place in the last four of the clay Major.