🔗 Share this article {'Mentally it's killing me': Alex de Minaur on verge of ATP Finals elimination after third-set meltdown The Australian tennis star's aspirations of reaching the ATP Finals semi-finals are dangling by a slender margin after a gut-wrenching three-set loss to Italian opponent Lorenzo Musetti. Devastating Loss in Turin The seventh-ranked player went down 7-5 3-6 7-5 after being unable to close out the match, allowing the Italian to remain in the tournament and now leaving the Australian needing to convincingly beat Taylor Fritz in his last group match to reach the semi-finals. Mental Demons Threaten Career But facing Fritz in 48 hours is the smallest of de Minaur's pressing worries as the Sydney native admits he must address the psychological barriers that risk undermining his career. A unsuccessful competitor of all six of his grand slam quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was couldn't hide his anguish after experiencing yet another high-stakes near miss with his tournament fate 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 issues that can't keep happening." Professional Turning Point "Essentially, if I really want to be genuine about advancing to the next level in my career, these contests, I must win them. I just can't. It seems as if I've been defeated in a lot of them this year. Most importantly, it's getting to a point where psychologically it's destroying me." Describing his emotions as "quite dark", de Minaur lamented a series of final set collapses in 2025 and said he must find a way to win the tight encounters. Recent Disappointments The Australia No 1'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 defeat to Felix Auger-Aliassime Semi-final 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 continue investing everything into these matches," de Minaur commented. "Whenever the outcome isn't positive, it's difficult to keep pushing through." 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 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 flickering 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. Championship Consequences The world No 2's victory, having already knocked over de Minaur, put Alcaraz within one win of securing the year-end top ranking from Jannik Sinner. Regardless if he loses to Musetti in his final group match, Alcaraz will reclaim the world No 1 ranking except if Sinner, who defeated Auger-Aliassime in his first match on Monday, goes undefeated to defend his ATP Finals title. "I'll attempt not to focus on it," commented Alcaraz. "It's going to be a really big 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."