The tennis event at the 2024 Paris Olympics is continuing to witness historic moments. On Saturday, Zheng Qinwen became the first Chinese player to win gold in tennis singles at the Olympics. The very next day, Italy's Lorenzo Musetti entered the list with a historic bronze in the men's singles.
Musetti became the first Italian in 100 years to win an Olympic tennis medal after defeating Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 on Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros. The previous instance when an Italian claimed the medal was at the 1924 Games by Uberto Morpurgo. Coincidentally, this victory also came in Paris, a bronze in the men's singles.
Also Check: WATCH: Zheng Qinwen becomes first Chinese player ever to win gold in tennis singles at Olympics
The 16th seed started the bronze medal match with a win in the first set but suffered a massive collapse in the second set. However, he regained his composure to win the final set after clinching a decisive break in the eighth game.
Watch Lorenzo Musetti's winning moment here:
Lorenzo Musetti, Olympic bronze medalist 🥉
— Bastien Fachan (@BastienFachan) August 3, 2024
WHAT A MOMENT. pic.twitter.com/LW5F5FMKah
Musetti was asked after the match how he planned to celebrate the historic achievement. The 22-year-old gave an interesting response that he would eat pizza at night as he has been eating plain pasta and chicken for the past three months.
“I’ve been eating plain pasta and chicken for three months, basically. So I think eating a pizza is the least I can do tonight!” said Musetti, as quoted by ATP.
The Italian had a remarkable run throughout the tournament but the momentum was halted in between by Novak Djokovic in the semi-final. The Serbian clinched a 6-4 6-2 win to advance to the finals. He is set to take on Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday for the summit showdown.
Also Check: Paris Olympics 2024 Tennis: Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz preview, stats and odds of final match
The Italian contingent suffered an early setback when top seed Jannik Sinner withdrew due to illness. Sinner, who was considered one of the favourites after his quarter-final loss at Wimbledon, missed a couple of tournaments. However, Musetti made up for his absence by winning a historic medal.