Italian second seed Lorenzo Musetti eased into the quarter-finals of the Barcelona Open on Thursday with a straight-sets victory over Frenchman Corentin Moutet.
The world number nine will face either Arthur Fils or Brandon Nakashima after a commanding 6-3, 6-4 win on the Pista Rafa Nadal, extending his perfect head-to-head record over the Frenchman to three matches from three.
He is the highest remaining seed left in Barcelona after Carlos Alcaraz pulled out of the tournament on Wednesday with a wrist injury sustained during his match against Otto Virtanen, a blow that blew the draw wide open heading into the last eight.
Musetti impressed on clay last season, reaching at least the semi-finals in the ATP 1000 events in Monte Carlo, Madrid and Rome, as well as at the French Open. But he has struggled for form and fitness this year and is still without an ATP title since 2022.
The Italian had lost in his opening matches at both Indian Wells and the Monte Carlo Masters, after being forced to retire injured from his Australian Open quarter-final against Novak Djokovic in January with an abductor problem. The path back to form on his favourite surface has been a slow one.
But after beating wildcard Martin Landaluce 7-5, 6-2 for his first win since Melbourne on Tuesday, he was in fine fettle against Moutet and much too strong for his 31st-ranked opponent. The left-handed Frenchman, capable of disrupting higher-ranked opponents with his variety and pace, was given little room to operate as Musetti’s powerful baseline game and clinical first serve kept him firmly in control throughout.
Moutet had arrived in Barcelona in decent touch after dismissing qualifier Ignacio Buse 6-4, 6-4 in the first round, but Musetti’s quality was of a different order entirely on the day.
Earlier Thursday, Russian fifth seed Andrey Rublev saw off Lorenzo Sonego 6-2, 6-3 to set up a quarter-final meeting with Tomas Machac, the beneficiary of Alcaraz’s withdrawal.
