{'Mentally it's killing me': De Minaur on brink of ATP Finals elimination after final set collapse

The Australian tennis star's aspirations of advancing to the ATP Finals semi-finals are hanging by a thread after a gut-wrenching three-set loss to Lorenzo Musetti.

Crushing Defeat in Turin

The seventh-ranked player went down 7-5 3-6 7-5 after failing to serve out the match, keeping the Italian to stay alive in the tournament and now leaving the Australian requiring to decisively defeat Taylor Fritz in his last group match to reach the semi-finals.

Psychological Challenges Threaten Career

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

A unsuccessful competitor of all six of his grand slam quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was unable to disguise his distress after suffering yet another high-stakes near miss 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 stated 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."

Career Crossroads

"I mean, if I really want to be genuine about advancing to the next level in my career, these matches, I must win 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 destroying me."

Characterizing his emotions as "quite dark", de Minaur lamented a series of final set collapses in 2025 and said he must discover methods to win the close matches.

Recent Setbacks

The top-ranked Australian's run of devastating defeats comprise:

• 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
• Final four 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 said. "When the outcome isn't positive, it's hard to keep persevering."

Urgent Resolution Needed

"This is an issue that if it doesn't get sorted, 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 previous encounters, though the sixth-ranked American emerged victorious in their matchup in this showpiece event last year.

The Aussie's chances remain alive after Fritz experienced a 6-7 (2-7) 7-5 6-3 loss to Carlos Alcaraz that ensured 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 securing the year-end top ranking from Jannik Sinner.

Even if he loses to Musetti in his final group match, Alcaraz will regain the world No 1 ranking unless Sinner, who defeated Auger-Aliassime in his opener on Monday, goes unbeaten to defend his ATP Finals title.

"I'll attempt not to focus on it," commented Alcaraz. "It's going to be 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."