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

Crushing Defeat 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 leaving the Australian needing to decisively defeat Taylor Fritz in his third and final group match to qualify for 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 Sydneysider concedes he must address the psychological barriers that risk undermining his career.

A loser of all six of his major tournament quarter-final appearances, the twenty-six-year-old was couldn't hide 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 deal with a loss like this one," de Minaur said in Turin. "I must talk to my team and try to resolve these issues because these are issues that can't keep happening."

Professional Turning Point

"I mean, 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 feels like I've been defeated in a lot of them this year. Most importantly, it's reaching a point where psychologically it's killing me."

Characterizing his feelings as "very bleak", de Minaur lamented a series of third-set slip-ups in 2025 and said he must find a way to win the close matches.

Recent Setbacks

The Australia No 1'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 loss to Felix Auger-Aliassime
• Semi-final 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. "Whenever the result's not there, it's hard to keep pushing through."

Immediate Solution Needed

"This is an issue that if it doesn't get sorted, it's going to consume me completely. 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 prestigious tournament last year.

The Australian's hopes remain flickering after Fritz suffered 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 world No 2's win, having already knocked over de Minaur, put Alcaraz a single victory away of claiming 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 beat Auger-Aliassime in his first match on Monday, goes undefeated to defend his ATP Finals title.

"I'll attempt not to think about it," said Alcaraz. "It's going to be a really big match for me. I will try not to let the nerves play a negative role in the match. I will think about my objectives, about performing much better than today."