‘We deserve it’ – ATP youngster on Italian tennis enjoying ‘its best moment’

Italian players have brought their nation to possibly its highest status ever according to this promising ATP youngster.

Lorenzo Musetti is entertaining his home crowd in Milan at the Next Gen ATP Finals this week.

Matteo Berrettini will be making his second appearance at the ATP Finals next week too, with world number 10 Jannik Sinner narrowly missing out but heading to Turin as an alternate.

Musetti is one of nine Italians ranked inside the world’s top 100. Only the USA and Spain have more, with 13 and 11 respectively.

When asked what it means for young Italians to see someone like him competing at the Next Gen Finals, Musetti had this to say.

“I think it is really important,” he told the ATP tour. “Italian tennis is living its best moment.

“We have almost 10 players in the top 100. We have Matteo Berrettini, who is playing fantastically.

“Lorenzo Sonego has achieved a lot of things. Jannik [sinner] won [the title in] Washington and won in Australia before.

“I can put myself in because I think I did a great job in the first half of the season.

“Then there is Gianluca Mager, who is playing really well. We have the comeback of Marco Cecchinato, who came from the top 200, which is really good.

“With Fabio [Fognini], it is Fabio. We deserve what we have achieved. It is a friendship group.”

Stefano Trevaglia and Andreas Seppi round out the group of nine Italians in the ATP top 100.

Berrettini reached the Wimbledon final earlier this year, the first Italian man to reach a singles Slam final since Adriano Panatta at Roland Garros in 1976.

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