🔗 Share this article

Alex de Minaur's aspirations of reaching the ATP Finals last four are dangling by a slender margin after a gut-wrenching defeat in three sets to Lorenzo Musetti.

Crushing Defeat in Turin

The world No 7 went down 7-5 3-6 7-5 after failing to serve out the match, allowing the Italian to remain in the tournament and now leaving the Australian needing to decisively defeat Taylor Fritz in his third and final group match to reach the semi-finals.

Mental Demons Threaten Career

But facing Fritz in two days' time is the smallest of de Minaur's pressing worries as the Sydney native admits he must confront the mental demons that threaten to cruel his career.

A unsuccessful competitor of all six of his major tournament quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was unable to disguise his anguish after experiencing yet another high-stakes near miss with his finals destiny in his own hands.

"I don't know how many times I can handle a loss like this one," de Minaur said in Turin. "I just have to talk to my team and try to sort out these issues because these are challenges that cannot continue occurring."

Professional Turning Point

"I mean, if I truly desire to be genuine about advancing to the next level in my career, these matches, I can't lose them. I just can't. It feels like I've lost a lot of them this year. More than anything, it's reaching a point where mentally it's killing me."

Describing his feelings as "quite dark", de Minaur lamented a succession of final set collapses in 2025 and said he must find a way to win the close matches.

Recent Disappointments

The Australia No 1's run of crushing losses comprise:

• Latest 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-5) outcome against Alexander Bublik at the Paris Masters
• Closely-contested US Open quarter-final loss to Felix Auger-Aliassime
• Semi-final in Monte Carlo against Musetti
• Wasted two-set lead against Bublik at the French Open
• Defeated in a third-set tiebreaker to Andrey Rublev in the Doha semi-finals

"I continue investing everything into these matches," de Minaur commented. "When the outcome isn't positive, it's difficult to keep pushing through."

Urgent Resolution Needed

"This is an issue that if it isn't resolved, it's going to consume me completely. I need to get it sorted quickly rather than delayed."

Upcoming Challenge

De Minaur and Fritz are 5-5 in past meetings, though the sixth-ranked American emerged victorious in their meeting in this showpiece event last year.

The Australian's hopes remain alive after Fritz suffered a 6-7 (2-7) 7-5 6-3 defeat to Carlos Alcaraz that guaranteed the Spaniard would progress to the semi-finals as the winner of the Jimmy Connors group.

Tournament Implications

The world No 2's victory, having already defeated de Minaur, put Alcaraz within one win of claiming the season-ending top ranking from Jannik Sinner.

Regardless if he is defeated by Musetti in his final group match, Alcaraz will regain the world No 1 ranking except if Sinner, who beat Auger-Aliassime in his first match on Monday, goes unbeaten to defend his ATP Finals title.

"I will try not to focus on it," commented Alcaraz. "This will represent a really big match for me. I will try not to let the anxiety play a negative role in the match. I will think about my goals, about performing much better than today."