🔗 Share this article

Alex de Minaur's hopes of advancing to the ATP Finals semi-finals are dangling by a slender margin after a heartbreaking 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 stay alive in the event and now leaving the Australian requiring to decisively defeat Taylor Fritz in his last group match to reach the semi-finals.

Mental Demons Threaten Career

But confronting Fritz in two days' time is the smallest of de Minaur's immediate concerns as the Sydney native concedes he must confront the psychological barriers that risk undermining his career.

A loser of all six of his grand slam quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was couldn't hide his anguish after suffering yet another crucial opportunity slipping away with his tournament fate in his own hands.

"I'm uncertain how many times I can deal with a loss like this one," de Minaur said in Turin. "I must talk to my team and try to sort out these problems because these are issues that cannot continue occurring."

Career Crossroads

"Essentially, if I truly desire to be genuine about advancing to the next level in my career, these contests, I can't lose them. I just must not. It seems as if I've lost a lot of them this year. More than anything, it's getting to a point where psychologically it's destroying me."

Describing his emotions as "very bleak", de Minaur lamented a series of third-set slip-ups in 2025 and said he must discover methods to win the close matches.

Recent Disappointments

The top-ranked Australian's streak of devastating defeats include:

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

"I keep putting everything into these matches," de Minaur said. "When the result's not there, it's hard to keep persevering."

Urgent Resolution Needed

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

Forthcoming Test

De Minaur and Fritz are tied at five wins each in past meetings, though the American world No 6 emerged victorious in their matchup in this showpiece event last year.

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

Championship Consequences

The second-ranked player's win, having already defeated de Minaur, put Alcaraz a single victory away of securing the year-end top ranking from Jannik Sinner.

Even if he is defeated by Musetti in his last round-robin contest, Alcaraz will regain the world No 1 ranking unless Sinner, who beat Auger-Aliassime in his opener on Monday, goes undefeated to defend his ATP Finals title.

"I will try not to focus on it," commented Alcaraz. "This will represent a extremely important match for me. I will try not to let the nerves play a bad time in the match. I will think about my goals, about feeling much better than today."