By Alberto Amalfi | Saturday, October 22, 2022
Lorenzo Musetti beat Miomir Kecmanovic 6-3, 6-4 advancing to his second career final and first on home soil where he will face Matteo Berrettini.
Photo credit: Getty
Crowd-pleasing player Lorenzo Musetti gave Naples fans what they wanted.
An all-Italian final.
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Deploying his all-court skills, Musetti moved past Miomir Kecmanovic 6-3, 6-4 advancing to his second career final and first on home soil.
Musetti, who defeated world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz in the Hamburg final for his maiden ATP title last July, hit 29 winners—10 more than his fifth-seeded opponent.
The fourth-seeded Musetti will meet compatriot Matteo Berrettini for the first time in Sunday's all-Italian final.
Earlier, Berrettini overcame apparent blisters on his left foot and a feisty Mackenzie McDonald with a 3-6, 7-6(2), 6-3 victory securing a spot in his first ATP hard-court final and maiden title match on home soil.
The second-seeded Berrettini blasted 11 aces in a two hour, 27-minute triumph that was all McDonald at the outset.
The 74th-ranked American raced out to a 5-0 lead before Berrettini finally broke through to get on the board. McDonald played cleaner tennis building a one-set lead.
The 2021 Wimbledon finalist Berrettini traded breaks with McDonald in the fourth and fifth games and the eight and ninth games of the second set. Berrettini took the tiebreaker to force a final set.
McDonald, who seemed to struggle with a leg issue in the latter stages, was looking stiff-legged and flat-footed in the final games. Berrettini broke twice in a row closing out a physical two hour, 27-minute win.
World No. 16 Berrettini improved to 32-11, including an 18-2 mark vs. opponents ranked outside the Top 50, this season.