Musetti dismisses Medjedovic and advances to the round of 16 in Vienna

Lorenzo Musetti defeated Hamad Medjedovic, a lucky loser, in his opening match at the ATP 500 tournament in Vienna.

When Musetti woke up this morning, he expected to face Stefanos Tsitsipas in a marquee first-round match in Vienna. Still in contention to compete in the ATP Finals, the Italian needs a strong run in Vienna this week.

But an hour before the match, the Greek withdrew, and Hamad Medjedovic, who lost in the final round of qualifying, was brought in as a lucky loser. It was the Serbian who faced the Italian for a spot in the round of 16. The two players had never met before.

Musetti took a few minutes to settle into the match, losing his opening service game. However, the uncertainty didn't last long, and the world No. 8, seeded fourth in the Austrian capital, broke back immediately.

Solid from that point on, the 23-year-old controlled the proceedings and ultimately won in straight sets (6-4, 6-3 in 1 hour and 18 minutes). The Italian advances to the round of 16, where he will face Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who earlier defeated Nicolai Budkov Kjaer (6-3, 6-3 in 1 hour and 9 minutes).