Corentin Moutet was looking to advance to his first career Masters 1000 quarterfinal.
The French star enjoyed a strong start to his Italian Open campaign, picking up several impressive victories.
Moutet beat Rinky Hijikata, 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 in the first round, before advancing past his countryman Ugo Humbert in the second, 6-3, 4-0 (RET).
He then took down Denmark’s Holger Rune in a marathon third-round match, winning 7-5, 5-7, 7-6, after three hours and 45 minutes of breathtaking action.
Moutet’s reward was a test against an in-form Jack Draper, who has made real strides on clay-courts recently.
Failing in his bid to reach the quarterfinals, Moutet lost to Draper in three sets, and now shares his thoughts on the Brit and a controversial incident that occurred during the match.
Corentin Moutet admits the video review proved him wrong in Jack Draper defeat
Controversy struck during the match when Moutet suggested a ball had bounced twice before Draper hit a return.
The video review was shown, and after seeing several different angles, the 26-year-old was happy to admit Draper had won the point fairly.
Speaking after the match, Moutet shared his thoughts on the incident.
“Well, they decided to give the point to him. They were right, you know? There is nothing to discuss about,” he said.
“It’s good that we have the review so we can see again the point. The referee took the decision.
“Jack [Draper] felt that way, so I trust him.
“That’s what I thought [that the ball had bounced twice]. That is why I asked for the review. But the review showed something else, so yeah.”
Moutet was then asked to explain what makes Draper such a tough opponent to play.
“He’s very aggressive. He serves good. He hit his forehand very powerfully. You always have to put pressure on him,” he said.
“If I play an easy ball with a bit less intensity, I’m going to run so much.
“Yeah, attack on every second serve. I don’t know. He’s one of the best this year on clay, on hard court. I don’t know.
“[It] was the first time I played with him. Very intense.”
Draper has most certainly been ‘one of the best’ in 2025, and is now just one win away from taking the world number four ranking from Taylor Fritz.
| Rank | Name | Age | Points |
| 1 | Jannik Sinner | 23 | 9,830 |
| 2 | Carlos Alcaraz | 22 | 8,050 |
| 3 | Alexander Zverev | 28 | 7,185 |
| 4 | Taylor Fritz | 27 | 4,625 |
| 5 | Jack Draper | 23 | 4,610 |
| 6 | Novak Djokovic | 37 | 4,080 |
| 7 | Casper Ruud | 26 | 3,805 |
| 8 | Alex de Minaur | 26 | 3,635 |
| 9 | Lorenzo Musetti | 23 | 3,560 |
| 10 | Holger Rune | 22 | 3,440 |
It is, however, Carlos Alcaraz who awaits Draper in the quarterfinals, a fairly significant obstacle standing between him and the number four ranking.
Draper and Alcaraz will battle it out for a place in the Italian Open semi-finals on Wednesday, May 14.
Corentin Moutet says what he found ‘very hard’ during his defeat to Jack Draper in Rome
Moutet won the first set against Draper 6-1, and looked in great shape to pull off an upset before the Brit came through to win in three.
The world number 83 revealed just how hard it is to maintain consistency throughout the duration of a three-set match.
“The thing is that’s not the only thing. You have to be here physically. You have to be here tenistically. Mentally, of course. You have to stay focused,” he said.
“At the same time, it’s not only about focus. It’s about, like, being aggressive every point, hit the ball every time I have the opportunity to make him run. I mean, it’s literally like every second you have to be the best version of yourself. It’s not easy.
“I did very well in the first set. As we can all see, it’s very hard to maintain all the match.
“At the same time, this guy played a lot of matches at this intensity, so he’s more used to it than me. He’s got more experience. But yeah, very good player.”
Moutet will now rest ahead of the French Open, his home tournament, which is scheduled to begin on Sunday, May 25.
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