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The Australian tennis star's hopes of reaching the ATP Finals semi-finals are hanging by a thread after a heartbreaking defeat in three sets to Italian opponent Lorenzo Musetti.

Crushing Defeat in Turin

The seventh-ranked player succumbed 7-5 3-6 7-5 after being unable to close out the match, allowing the Italian to stay alive in the tournament and now leaving the Australian needing to convincingly beat Taylor Fritz in his third and final group match to reach the semi-finals.

Psychological Challenges Threaten Career

But confronting Fritz in two days' time is the least of de Minaur's pressing worries as the Sydneysider concedes he must confront the mental demons 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 crucial opportunity slipping away 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 must talk to my team and try to resolve these issues because these are challenges that cannot continue occurring."

Career Crossroads

"I mean, if I truly desire to be serious about taking the next step in my career, these contests, I must win them. I just can't. It seems as if I've lost a lot of them this year. More than anything, it's getting to a point where psychologically it's killing me."

Describing his feelings as "quite dark", de Minaur lamented a succession of third-set slip-ups in 2025 and said he must discover methods to win the tight encounters.

Recent Disappointments

The Australia No 1's run 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 defeat 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 commented. "When 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 tied at five wins each in previous encounters, though the sixth-ranked American won their meeting in this showpiece event last year.

The Aussie's hopes remain flickering after Fritz suffered a 6-7 (2-7) 7-5 6-3 loss to Carlos Alcaraz that guaranteed the Spaniard would advance to the semi-finals as the winner of the Jimmy Connors group.

Championship Consequences

The second-ranked player's victory, having already knocked over 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 last round-robin contest, Alcaraz will reclaim the world No 1 ranking except if Sinner, who beat Auger-Aliassime in his first match on Monday, goes undefeated to defend his ATP Finals title.

"I'll attempt not to focus on 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 objectives, about performing much better than today."