Zverev beaten by Musetti in Paris Masters in first match as world No.1

Alexander Zverev, who moved to world No. 1 on Monday, lost 7-6 (5), 6-2 to Lorenzo Musetti in the second round of the Paris Masters on Wednesday. It was Zverev's first match since taking over the top spot.

Zverev struggled to find any rhythm against the Italian, dropping a closely contested opening set before Musetti raised his level in the second and wrapped up the match in straight sets. The result was described as one of the biggest wins of Musetti's season and brought an end to Zverev's opening outing since becoming world No. 1 after a season that included his first two Grand Slam titles at the French Open and US Open.

Zverev was direct in his assessment of his performance: "Yeah, I was bad. It's quite simple," he said. "This was not a very good match for me, I think maybe one of the worst in the last couple of months." He also commented on the playing surface, saying: "The court was very, very fast," and "I actually think that this is the court that it should be."

Musetti finished with 29 winners to Zverev's 25 and committed just 12 unforced errors compared to the German's 21. He sealed the victory with an ace to complete the straight-sets win.

Elsewhere in Paris, Frances Tiafoe, the seventh seed, lost 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (9) to Frenchman Quentin Halys after wasting four match points, a result that confirmed Arthur Fils' qualification for the ATP Finals. Fils will become the first Frenchman to feature at the season-ending tournament since Gael Monfils in 2016.

Fourth seed Daniil Medvedev was defeated 6-4, 6-4 by Ignacio Buse. Novak Djokovic was scheduled to face qualifier Rinky Hijikata later on Wednesday, while Carlos Alcaraz was set to take on American Alex Michelsen.

Djokovic needs to reach the semifinals in Paris to keep his hopes of qualifying for the ATP Finals alive; only two places remain for the November 15-22 tournament in Turin, with Stockholm the only other ATP 250 event left after Paris.