Musetti Returns After 76 Days: Dominant Win in Washington Derby

Seventy-Six Days Away, Forty Minutes to Win

When Lorenzo Musetti last competed on the ATP Tour, his body was already telling him something was wrong. A left rectus femoris injury, sustained during the Rome clay-court event, brought his 2026 season to an abrupt halt in May and forced him to miss both Roland Garros and Wimbledon — 76 days in total without a competitive match. His return at the Mubadala DC Open on Monday answered the first question emphatically: the physical layoff has not blunted the tennis.

In an all-Italian first-round contest, Musetti defeated compatriot Matteo Arnaldi in 40 minutes. The scoreline read 6-0, 3-1 — Arnaldi withdrew with a physical problem while trailing in the second set — but the numbers only hint at how one-sided the encounter was. In the opening set, Musetti conceded just one point on his own serve. His backhand dictated from the baseline throughout, and Arnaldi could find no foothold in the match from the first game.

A Lesson Learned and a Statement Made

Musetti was reflective about what led to the injury and what it taught him. "Playing so many matches damaged my body," he said, acknowledging that the relentless pace of the clay-court swing had been a contributing factor. The enforced break allowed him to rest physically and mentally, spend time with his family, and approach his return with a clearer head — and, evidently, a cleaner game.

He arrived at Washington in an ambitious frame of mind. Before the tournament, Musetti said openly that he could "dream of winning the ATP 500" here — a statement that might have seemed fanciful from a player 76 days removed from match play, but which looked considerably less far-fetched after Monday's performance. The serving, the footwork, and the signature single-handed backhand were all functioning precisely.

Vukic Next, Then the US Open Question

The result does carry a caveat. Arnaldi's retirement at 3-1 in the second set means Musetti has not yet been stretched over a full match in conditions. The second-round opponent, Aleksandar Vukic — who defeated Zachary Svajda 6-3, 6-1 in the first round — will provide a more sustained physical test, and that examination will tell more about where Musetti's match fitness actually stands after two and a half months without competition.

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The wider context is the US Open, which begins in late August. Hard-court matches in Washington are not incidental preparation for Musetti: they are the foundation for the last Grand Slam of the season, and a player of his quality will know that results here carry weight beyond the points table. The first step back on Monday was immaculate. The real test starts in the second round.