Novak Djokovic will double his prayers on Wednesday night after receiving a massive slice of luck in the Australian Open quarter-finals. He was outplayed for two sets by an inspired Lorenzo Musetti before injury forced the Italian to retire while leading 6-4, 6-3, 1-3.
Musetti had been working towards one of his best victories, dominating Djokovic from the baseline and establishing an authoritative lead before his retirement.
“I don’t know what to say except that I feel really sorry for him. He was a far better player, I was on my way home tonight,” said Djokovic, who will face the No 2 seed Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals.
“These kinds of things happen in sport. It happened to me a few times, but being in the quarters of a grand slam, two sets to love up, and being in full control, I mean, so unfortunate. I wish him a speedy recovery. And he should have been the winner today, there’s no doubt.”
Despite Djokovic’s 9-1 record against Musetti before the match, the pair have enjoyed numerous dramatic battles, most notably their 3am tussle at Roland Garros in 2024, won by Djokovic in five gruelling sets after he struggled to break down Musetti’s defence in painfully slow nighttime conditions.
Djokovic’s wariness of Musetti’s defensive skills and physicality is perhaps why he was so desperate to shorten points. He approached the net 19 times in the opening set alone, throwing in numerous serve‑and‑volley attempts, looking to attack early.
He did not fare well. Not only is Musetti one of the fastest players in the game, he is resourceful and blessed with an arsenal of shots. The Italian picked Djokovic off at the net with a variety of spectacular passing shots. Musetti also served well and struck his forehand brilliantly, marching to a two-set lead.
Djokovic was treated for blisters, his right foot heavily taped. He looked in considerable pain during the medical timeout, repeatedly wincing as the physio applied tape. At the beginning of the third set, Djokovic then devoted a significant amount of time between points to stretching various parts of his body.
Lorenzo Musetti receives medical treatment. Photograph: William West/AFP/Getty Images
Yet the next time a physio entered the court it was for Musetti. At 1-1 on his serve, the Italian suddenly began to struggle with his movement and then he stopped running for the ball on Djokovic’s first break point. Musetti called for a medical timeout for treatment on his right thigh. It quickly became clear that he could not move around the court and there was no chance of him being competitive for the rest of the match. He opted to retire while trailing 1-3.
Victory against Djokovic would have brought Musetti’s first hard‑court grand slam semi-final after reaching the last four of Wimbledon and the French Open. Also, having started the tournament ranked No 5, it would have given the Italian a shot at achieving a career‑high world ranking. Instead, potentially one of the greatest days of Musetti’s career turned into one of the most painful.
“Honestly, I never imagined the feeling of leading two sets to zero against Novak and playing like that and have the lead of the match like that and be forced to retire is something that I will never imagine,” Musetti said. “Of course, it’s really painful.”
This had already been a fortuitous Australian Open for Djokovic, who had received a fourth-round walkover against the 16th seed Jakub Mensik, his conqueror in the Miami Open final last year. “I’m going to double my prayers tonight and gratitude to God for giving my opportunity once again,” he said.