🔗 Share this article

The Australian tennis star's aspirations of advancing to the ATP Finals last four are dangling by a slender margin after a gut-wrenching three-set loss to Lorenzo Musetti.

Devastating Loss in Turin

The world No 7 went down 7-5 3-6 7-5 after failing to serve out the match, keeping 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 qualify for the semi-finals.

Psychological Challenges Threaten Career

But confronting Fritz in 48 hours is the smallest of de Minaur's pressing worries as the Sydneysider admits he must confront the mental demons that threaten to cruel his career.

A unsuccessful competitor of all six of his grand slam quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was couldn't hide his distress after suffering yet another crucial opportunity slipping away 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 stated in Turin. "I must talk to my team and try to sort out these problems because these are challenges that can't keep happening."

Career Crossroads

"I mean, if I truly desire to be genuine about taking the next step 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 reaching a point where psychologically it's destroying me."

Describing his emotions as "quite dark", de Minaur bemoaned a succession 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 run of crushing losses include:

• Latest 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-5) result against Alexander Bublik at the Paris Masters
• Tightly-fought US Open quarter-final loss 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 commented. "When the result's not there, it's difficult to keep persevering."

Urgent Resolution Needed

"It's something that if it isn't resolved, it's going to eat me alive. I must get it sorted quickly rather than delayed."

Forthcoming Test

De Minaur and Fritz are tied at five wins each in past meetings, though the sixth-ranked American won their meeting in this showpiece event last year.

The Aussie's chances remain flickering 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 world No 2's victory, having already knocked over de Minaur, put Alcaraz a single victory away of claiming the year-end top ranking from Jannik Sinner.

Regardless if he loses to Musetti in his last round-robin contest, Alcaraz will reclaim the world No 1 ranking unless Sinner, who beat Auger-Aliassime in his opener on Monday, goes unbeaten to retain 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 objectives, about performing much better than today."