PARIS, Nov 4 (Reuters) – Lorenzo Musetti spoiled Alexander Zverev’s first match as world number one by toppling him in the second round of the Paris Masters on Wednesday, while Rinky Hijikata ended Novak Djokovic’s hopes of qualifying for the ATP Finals.
The 29-year-old Zverev, who climbed to number one on Monday, suffered a surprise 7-6(5) 6-2 defeat just days after losing to Australia’s Alex de Minaur in the Vienna Open semi-finals.
Musetti, a former world number five, seized the initiative by winning six of the final seven points of the opening-set tiebreak before taking command of the second set.
The 24-year-old Italian broke Zverev for a 2-1 lead and struck again to move 5-2 ahead on his way to victory.
World number 24 Musetti, a former French Open and Wimbledon semi-finalist, fired 29 winners and eight aces during the contest to improve his head-to-head record against Zverev to 4-2.
The win continued a resurgence for Musetti, who has been hampered by injuries throughout the 2026 season. His toughest setback came at the Australian Open, where he retired while leading Djokovic by two sets in their quarter-final. Musetti ended a four-year wait for a title in Lyon last month.
Zverev has enjoyed a breakthrough season, capturing his maiden Grand Slam title at the French Open before adding a second major crown at the US Open.
Asked whether his first match as world number one had brought additional pressure, the German top seed told reporters: “I don’t know if it’s stress.
“I was a bit annoyed, to be honest, the last couple of days, because achieving the world number one status is something that I think every player dreams of.
“But then I feel like I’m the only world number one in tennis history that has to explain why it’s okay for me to be world number one, which I find quite difficult, because I think I deserve to be where I am, even though I lost today.
“I don’t think anybody had to explain themselves as much as I had to do in the last couple of days, which, for me, is annoying, to be honest.”
Zverev did not specify who or what had prompted his frustration since he climbed to the top of the rankings.
His new status also renewed scrutiny of domestic abuse allegations made against him by two former partners.
A German court closed a case involving his former partner Brenda Patea after a 2024 settlement without a finding of guilt, and the ATP ended a separate investigation into allegations by Olga Sharypova in 2023, citing insufficient evidence.
Zverev has repeatedly denied the allegations.
MORE SEEDS FALL
Zverev has already secured his place at this month’s ATP Finals in Turin, but Djokovic’s hopes of joining him were ended by world number 83 Hijikata.
The 25-year-old Australian beat the 24-times Grand Slam champion 2-6 6-3 6-3.
The 39-year-old Serb, who missed the last two editions of the season-ending tournament, arrived in Paris needing a deep run after early exits in Shanghai and Basel.
Elsewhere, unseeded Peruvian Ignacio Buse claimed the biggest win of his career by upsetting Russian fourth seed Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-4.
Medvedev, who has already qualified for Turin, received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after striking the court in frustration at 4-4 in the second set.
Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry also produced an upset, defeating eighth seed De Minaur 7-6(2) 6-3.
(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; editing by Ed Osmond)
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