Wimbledon 2024: Novak Djokovic vs Lorenzo Musetti preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds, and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (2) Novak Djokovic vs (25) Lorenzo Musetti
Date: July 12, 2024
Tournament: Wimbledon 2024
Round: Semifinal
Venue: All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, England
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Grass
Prize Money: £50,000,000
Live Telecast: USA - ESPN, Tennis Channel | UK - BBC | Canada - TSN/RDS, ESPN International
Novak Djokovic vs Lorenzo Musetti preview
World No. 2 Novak Djokovic will lock horns with Lorenzo Musetti in the semifinals of Wimbledon 2024 on Friday.
Djokovic commenced his quest for a record 25th Major title with a 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 win over Vit Kopriva. Jacob Fearnley tested him a fair bit in the second round, though the Serb came out on top in the end in four sets.
Alexei Popyrin snagged the first set against Djokovic in the third round but he recovered quickly to score another four-set victory. He was in the zone against Holger Rune in the fourth round and beat him 6-3, 6-4, 6-2. He advanced to the semifinals without hitting a single shot as Alex de Minaur withdrew prior to their quarterfinal match due to an injury.
Musetti needed four sets to down Constant Lestienne in his opener, and was pushed to five sets by compatriot Luciano Darderi in the second round. Another couple of four-set victories over Francisco Comesana and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard pushed him into a maiden Major quarterfinal, where he faced Taylor Fritz.
After dropping the opening set, Musetti fought back to take the second set in a tie-break. He maintained the momentum to capture the third set with ease but Fritz struck back to nab the fourth set. The Italian ran away with the match in the decider as he conceded only one game in it for a 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 win.
Novak Djokovic vs Lorenzo Musetti head-to-head
Djokovic leads Musetti 5-1 in the head-to-head. He won their previous encounter at this year's French Open in five sets.
Novak Djokovic vs Lorenzo Musetti odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Novak Djokovic vs Lorenzo Musetti prediction
Musetti is through to his maiden Grand Slam semifinal after a hard-fought win over Fritz. He won 79 percent of his first serve points, and fired 35 winners compared to 39 unforced errors.
Djokovic, meanwhile, is into his 13th semifinal at Wimbledon, a record which he now shares with his former rival Roger Federer. Despite some occasional hiccups, he has looked quite sharp in all of his matches.
Musetti challenged Djokovic when they crossed paths at last month's French Open, though the latter triumphed once again. This will be their very first encounter on grass. The Italian had a negative win-loss record on the surface prior to this year, which he has overturned quite remarkably in the last few weeks.
Musetti reached the semifinals in Stuttgart, and finished as the runner-up at Queen's Club. He has continued his good run of form here, though trying to one-up Djokovic at Wimbledon is no easy task, where his current record stands at 96-11.
The Serb is also feeling confident after his quick recovery from knee surgery, and is fired up after feeling a little slighted by the crowd. The stars seem to be aligning for him in every possible way, and he's got a great shot at securing yet another win over Musetti.
Pick: Novak Djokovic to win in four sets.