Two sets down: Lorenzo Musetti joins rare list of major retirements | ATP Tour

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Twice set, no way out: Musetti joins rare list of major retirements

Check out the players who retired after winning the first two sets

January 28, 2026

When Lorenzo Musetti took to the court at the Australian Open on Tuesday night, the scoreboard told a story the sport of tennis has almost never seen.

The Italian was forced to retire in the quarter-finals after two sets against Novak Djokovic, joining one of the most painful and unusual footnotes in the sport: players who lead two sets at a Grand Slam match but never finish.

It’s worth noting that this isn’t the first time Musetti has found himself on the wrong side of this rare statistic, and against the same opponent. At the 2021 French Open, Musetti shocked the tennis world by taking the opening two sets from Djokovic in the fourth round. A physical struggle ensued, with Djokovic fighting back and Musetti eventually retiring in the fifth set. Five years later, on a different surface, history repeated itself.

Throughout the Open era (since 1968), only a handful of players have withdrawn from a major match with a two-set advantage. Grigor Dimitrov was the latest example at last year’s Wimbledon, when he withdrew with a chest injury while leading Yannick Sinner 6-3, 7-5, 2-2.

Research contributions by Jon Jeraj