Carlos Alcaraz is through to his second straight French Open final, but the story on Court Philippe-Chatrier Friday was as much about Lorenzo Musetti’s sudden retirement as the Spaniard’s comeback heroics. The highly anticipated semifinal delivered two tense sets before Musetti, hampered by a left thigh injury, was forced to call it quits just two games into the fourth set, leaving fans and commentators searching for answers.
Musetti, who had played some of his best tennis this clay season, took the first set 6-4 and pushed Alcaraz to a tiebreak in the second. The Italian’s elegant shot-making and relentless defense kept the defending champion off balance for nearly two hours But after Alcaraz leveled the match and stormed through the third set 6-0, Musetti’s movement became visibly restricted. A trainer attended to his right hamstring after the fifth game of the third set, but the Italian opted not to have it taped.
With Alcaraz in full control and leading 2-0 in the fourth, Musetti retired—ending his deepest Grand Slam run in disappointment. The walkover sparked immediate speculation: Was it a hamstring pull, a cramp, or something more serious? Musetti’s team later confirmed a left thigh issue, but the full extent of the injury remains unclear.
“It’s never ideal to advance this way,” Alcaraz said after the match, expressing respect for Musetti’s breakthrough clay season and wishing him a swift recovery The Spaniard now awaits the winner of the Novak Djokovic vs. Jannik Sinner semifinal for Sunday’s final, while fans are left wondering if Musetti will bounce back in time for the rest of the summer schedule.
For now, the tennis world is left with more questions than answers about Musetti’s injury and what could have been in this Roland Garros thriller.
