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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 gut-wrenching defeat in three sets to Italian opponent Lorenzo Musetti.

Devastating Loss in Turin

The world No 7 went down 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 qualify for the semi-finals.

Mental Demons Threaten Career

But facing Fritz in 48 hours is the smallest of de Minaur's pressing worries as the Sydneysider admits 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 unable to disguise his distress after experiencing yet another high-stakes near miss 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 issues that can't keep happening."

Career Crossroads

"Essentially, if I really want to be serious about advancing to the next level in my career, these contests, I must win them. I just must not. It seems as if I've lost a lot of them this year. More than anything, it's getting to a point where mentally it's destroying me."

Characterizing his emotions as "very bleak", de Minaur bemoaned a succession of final set collapses in 2025 and said he must discover methods to win the tight encounters.

Recent Disappointments

The top-ranked Australian's run of devastating defeats include:

• Recent 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-5) outcome against Alexander Bublik at the Paris Masters
• Closely-contested 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
• Lost in a third-set tiebreaker to Andrey Rublev in the Doha semi-finals

"I keep putting everything into these matches," de Minaur said. "Whenever the result's not there, it's hard to keep pushing through."

Immediate Solution Needed

"It's something that if it doesn't get sorted, it's going to eat me alive. I need to get it sorted sooner rather than later."

Upcoming Challenge

De Minaur and Fritz are 5-5 in previous encounters, though the American world No 6 emerged victorious in their meeting in this prestigious tournament last year.

The Australian's chances remain alive after Fritz suffered a 6-7 (2-7) 7-5 6-3 loss to Carlos Alcaraz that ensured the Spaniard would advance to the semi-finals as the victor of the Jimmy Connors group.

Championship Consequences

The second-ranked player's win, having already knocked over de Minaur, put Alcaraz within one win of securing the season-ending top ranking from Jannik Sinner.

Regardless if he loses to Musetti in his final group match, Alcaraz will regain the world No 1 ranking except if Sinner, who defeated Auger-Aliassime in his opener on Monday, goes unbeaten to retain his ATP Finals title.

"I'll attempt not to focus on it," commented Alcaraz. "It's going to be a extremely important match for me. I will try not to let the nerves play a negative role in the match. I will concentrate on my goals, about feeling much better than today."