Draper downs Musetti, reaches Madrid final

Jack Draper kept his red-hot season blazing on Friday at the Mutua Madrid Open, where he ousted Lorenzo Musetti 6-3, 7-6(4) to reach his third final of the year and second at ATP Masters 1000 level.

The lefty was watertight from the baseline, striking the ball freely and confidently. He consistently kept pressure on Musetti and rarely allowed the Italian an opening, even when faced with pressure in a second-set tie-break.

“I felt like both of us, our quality didn’t really drop from the first ball,” said Draper, who extended his perfect record against Musetti, improving to 4-0 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series. “Credit to Lorenzo, he’s obviously playing so good on the clay. I played him on hard, and on grass when we were juniors, growing up with him. But on clay, he’s a different beast, so to get this win on this court in this stage, semi-finals, it means so much to me.”

Following his semi-final win, Draper has overtaken Alexander Zverev for second in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. Should Draper win the title, he would be just 100 points behind first-placed Carlos Alcaraz. The 23-year-old is aiming for his first trip to the Nitto ATP Finals.

Welcome to the Jack Draper show 🍿

Into the final without dropping a set, pure 🔥@mutuamadridopen | #MMOpen pic.twitter.com/CpJmEy8B6J

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 2, 2025

The absorbing semi-final clash began with break points featured in each of the opening four games. Draper and Musetti shook off the nerves and both raised their level as the match wore on, trading a thrilling display of shotmaking throughout the second set.

But it was the lefty’s booming serve and more consistent play that made the slim difference in crucial moments. Draper won 81 per cent (21/26) of his first-serve points in the second set and dropped just three points on his second delivery, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

“I think towards the end of the second set I definitely felt like he started to play well, he hit a lot of winners and stuff,” Draper said of Musetti. “I [controlled] pretty well with good serve and volleys. I think I started serving really well and just learned what makes him uncomfortable in that moment and not letting him dictate me. That's something I was really happy with today, I think I problem-solved really well.”

Up next for Draper is 14th seed Casper Ruud, who is hunting his biggest career title. Despite both men’s presence near the top of the sport, Sunday will mark their first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting. Ruud earlier advanced past Francisco Cerundolo 6-4, 7-5.

A three-time tour-level champion, Draper triumphed in Indian Wells earlier this season and had already secured his Top 5 debut in Monday’s PIF ATP Rankings following his Madrid quarter-final win. The Sutton native joins Andy Murray as the only Brits to reach ATP Masters 1000 finals on both clay and hard.

Musetti was competing in his second ATP Masters 1000 semi-final, both of which have come this European clay swing. A finalist in Monte-Carlo, Musetti will crack the Top 10 on Monday, becoming the sixth Italian player since 1973 to achieve that feat. He is 16-6 on the season, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index.