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Match details
Fixture: Reilly Opelka vs Lorenzo Musetti
Date: 11 May 2021
Tournament: Internazionali BNL d'italia 2021
Round: Second round (Round of 32)
Venue: Rome, Italy
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Red clay
Prize money: €2,082,960
Match timing: Approx 2 pm local time, 5.30 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Reilly Opelka vs Lorenzo Musetti preview
After getting past Hubert Hurkacz in the first round on Monday, home favorite Lorenzo Musetti will lock horns with Reilly Opelka in the second round of the 2021 Italian Open on Tuesday.
Musetti led Hurkacz 6-4, 2-0 when the Pole conceded the match due to an injury. Opelka, meanwhile, beat veteran Frenchman Richard Gasquet 6-1, 7-5 in his first-round match on Sunday. The win over Gasquet was Opelka's first on clay this year.
The lanky American has endured a rough start to 2021, suffering seven defeats out of 10 matches played. Gasquet was, in fact, also Opelka's first top 100 win of the season.
The 23-year-old racked up a mammoth 18 aces on Monday, which on Rome's slow clay is an astounding figure. Opelka also won almost 80% of his first serve points and did not face a break point all match.
Lorenzo Musetti, meanwhile, has a 9-5 win-loss record in 2021 with a reasonable amount of success on clay. Musetti made it to the quarterfinals of the Sardegna Open and the second round of the Barcelona Open, beating Feliciano Lopez at the latter event.
However, the teenager failed to make it to the main draw at the Madrid Open; he lost in the second round of qualifying to Carlos Taberner.
Reilly Opelka vs Lorenzo Musetti head-to-head
Reilly Opelka and Lorenzo Musetti are yet to face each other on tour, and so their head-to-head currently stands at 0-0.
Reilly Opelka vs Lorenzo Musetti prediction
Reilly Opelka's biggest weapon is easily his mammoth serve. Standing at 6'11", Opelka can rain down aces without any trouble, and that might give him a bit of an advantage over Lorenzo Musetti.
The Italian has struggled against players who have been able to win a good percentage (anything above 70%) of their first serve points against him in recent weeks.
However, Musetti does hold the edge in the groundstrokes department, given how well he strikes the ball off both wings. Opelka's defense is one of his weakest aspects, and that is likely to come to the fore against Musetti.
The key for the American will be to maintain a high percentage of first serves and win a bunch of free points. Getting into long rallies against Musetti might be a recipe for disaster for Opelka, as the Italian is the better mover and returner on clay.
If Opelka can serve at his best throughout the match, he could pull off the biggest win of his season. But that is easier said than done given his inconsistencies this year, which is why Musetti goes into this fixture as the slight favorite.
Prediction: Lorenzo Musetti to win in three sets.
