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The Australian tennis star's hopes of advancing to the ATP Finals last four are dangling by a slender margin after a heartbreaking defeat in three sets to Italian opponent Lorenzo Musetti.

Devastating Loss in Turin

The world No 7 went down 7-5 3-6 7-5 after being unable to close out the match, allowing the Italian to remain in the event and now forcing the Australian needing to convincingly beat Taylor Fritz in his last group match to reach the semi-finals.

Mental Demons Threaten Career

But confronting Fritz in 48 hours is the smallest of de Minaur's immediate concerns as the Sydney native admits he must address the mental demons that threaten to cruel his career.

A unsuccessful competitor of all six of his grand slam quarter-final appearances, the twenty-six-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'm uncertain 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 issues because these are issues that can't keep happening."

Career Crossroads

"Essentially, if I truly desire to be serious about taking the next step in my career, these contests, I can't lose them. I just can't. It feels like I've lost a lot of them this year. Most importantly, it's reaching a point where psychologically it's destroying me."

Describing his emotions as "quite dark", de Minaur bemoaned a series 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) 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
• Lost in a third-set tiebreaker to Andrey Rublev in the Doha semi-finals

"I keep putting everything into these matches," de Minaur said. "Whenever the outcome isn't positive, it's hard to keep pushing through."

Immediate Solution Needed

"This is an issue that if it isn't resolved, it's going to eat me alive. I must get it sorted sooner rather than later."

Forthcoming Test

De Minaur and Fritz are 5-5 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 defeat to Carlos Alcaraz that ensured the Spaniard would advance to the semi-finals as the winner of the Jimmy Connors group.

Tournament Implications

The second-ranked player's victory, having already defeated de Minaur, put Alcaraz within one win of securing the season-ending 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 defeated Auger-Aliassime in his opener on Monday, goes undefeated to defend his ATP Finals title.

"I will try not to think about it," said Alcaraz. "It's going to be a extremely important match for me. I will try not to let the anxiety play a negative role in the match. I will concentrate on my goals, about performing much better than today."