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Alex de Minaur's aspirations 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.

Crushing Defeat in Turin

The seventh-ranked player succumbed 7-5 3-6 7-5 after being unable to close out the match, keeping the Italian to stay alive in the event and now forcing the Australian requiring 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 48 hours is the smallest of de Minaur's immediate concerns as the Sydneysider admits he must confront the psychological barriers that threaten to cruel his career.

A loser of all six of his major tournament quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was couldn't hide his distress after experiencing yet another high-stakes near miss with his finals destiny 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 must talk to my team and try to resolve these issues because these are issues that cannot continue occurring."

Professional Turning Point

"I mean, if I truly desire to be serious about advancing to the next level in my career, these contests, I must win them. I just must not. It feels like I've been defeated in a lot of them this year. More than anything, it's reaching a point where psychologically it's destroying me."

Describing his feelings as "very bleak", de Minaur bemoaned 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 streak of devastating defeats comprise:

• Recent 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-5) outcome against Alexander Bublik at the Paris Masters
• Closely-contested US Open quarter-final defeat to Felix Auger-Aliassime
• Semi-final 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. "Whenever the outcome isn't positive, it's difficult to keep pushing through."

Immediate Solution Needed

"It's something that if it isn't resolved, it's going to eat me alive. 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 American world No 6 emerged victorious in their meeting in this showpiece event last year.

The Aussie's hopes remain alive after Fritz suffered a 6-7 (2-7) 7-5 6-3 loss 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 victory, 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 defeated Auger-Aliassime in his opener on Monday, goes undefeated to retain his ATP Finals title.

"I will try 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 anxiety play a bad time in the match. I will think about my goals, about feeling much better than today."