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The Australian tennis star's hopes of advancing to the ATP Finals semi-finals are dangling by a slender margin after a heartbreaking three-set loss to 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, 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 qualify for the semi-finals.

Mental Demons Threaten Career

But facing Fritz in 48 hours is the least of de Minaur's pressing worries as the Sydney native admits he must address the mental demons that threaten to cruel his career.

A loser of all six of his grand slam quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was couldn't hide his distress after suffering 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 said in Turin. "I just have to talk to my team and try to sort out these issues because these are issues that cannot continue occurring."

Professional Turning Point

"Essentially, if I really want to be serious 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. Most importantly, it's getting to a point where mentally it's destroying me."

Characterizing his emotions as "quite dark", de Minaur lamented a series of third-set slip-ups in 2025 and said he must find a way to win the tight encounters.

Recent Disappointments

The top-ranked Australian's run of crushing losses comprise:

• Latest 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-5) outcome 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
• Squandered 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 commented. "When the outcome isn't positive, it's hard to keep persevering."

Immediate Solution Needed

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

Upcoming Challenge

De Minaur and Fritz are tied at five wins each in past meetings, though the American world No 6 won their matchup in this prestigious tournament last year.

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

Championship Consequences

The world No 2's win, having already defeated de Minaur, put Alcaraz a single victory away of claiming 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 except if Sinner, who defeated Auger-Aliassime in his opener on Monday, goes undefeated to defend his ATP Finals title.

"I'll attempt not to think about it," commented Alcaraz. "It's going to be a really big match for me. I will try not to let the anxiety play a bad time in the match. I will think about my objectives, about feeling much better than today."