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The Australian tennis star's aspirations of reaching the ATP Finals semi-finals are dangling by a slender margin after a gut-wrenching three-set loss 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, keeping the Italian to remain in the tournament and now leaving the Australian needing to convincingly beat Taylor Fritz in his last group match to qualify for the semi-finals.

Psychological Challenges Threaten Career

But confronting Fritz in two days' time is the smallest of de Minaur's pressing worries as the Sydney native admits he must address the psychological barriers that risk undermining his career.

A unsuccessful competitor of all six of his grand slam quarter-final appearances, the 26-year-old was unable to disguise 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 handle a loss like this one," de Minaur said in Turin. "I just have to talk to my team and try to resolve these problems because these are issues that can't keep happening."

Career Crossroads

"Essentially, if I truly desire to be genuine about taking the next step in my career, these matches, I can't lose them. I just can't. It seems as if I've been defeated in a lot of them this year. More than anything, it's getting to a point where psychologically it's killing me."

Describing his emotions as "very bleak", de Minaur bemoaned a series of final set collapses in 2025 and said he must find a way to win the tight encounters.

Recent Disappointments

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
• Tightly-fought 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
• 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 result's not there, it's difficult to keep pushing through."

Immediate Solution Needed

"This is an issue 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 tied at five wins each in past meetings, though the sixth-ranked American emerged victorious in their matchup in this prestigious tournament last year.

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

Tournament Implications

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.

Even if he is defeated by Musetti in his last round-robin contest, Alcaraz will reclaim the world No 1 ranking except if Sinner, who defeated Auger-Aliassime in his first match on Monday, goes undefeated to retain his ATP Finals title.

"I will try not to think about it," commented 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."