Lorenzo Musetti defeated Reilly Opelka 7–6, 1–6, 6–1, 7–5 in the first round of the US Open on hard court on 26 August 2024, confirming his pre-match favourite status with odds of 1.4 to Opelka's 3.22. The Italian's performance was uneven across four sets, surrendering the second set decisively before reasserting control in the third. The opening set went to a tiebreak, then the fourth required a late surge to secure the win. Musetti's ability to recover from the second-set lapse and dominate the third demonstrates the mental resilience required at Grand Slams, though the inconsistency will demand refinement in subsequent rounds.