Alex de Minaur has offered up some honest reflections on the emotional press conference he gave after a disappointing defeat against Lorenzo Musetti at the ATP Finals last month.
De Minaur was crestfallen after he missed out on a chance to win his first match at the end-of-season tournament, even though he had chances to secure the victory in the third set.
The Australian could not hide his despair in the post-match press conference, with images of the tearful De Minaur trying to complete his media duties sparking suggestions he should not have been forced to go into a press conference when he was still reeling from the defeat.
Speaking to Tennis365 as he prepares to play in this weekend’s UTS Grand Final in London, De Minaur offered up a thoughtful reflection on what was clearly a tough moment to live through.
“Ultimately, I don’t think it’s the worst thing to be completely honest and open,” he began. “A lot of the time as players, we try to put on a brave face, but certain losses are a lot harder.
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“We would probably be lying if we said this defeat has not affected me, I’m happy with the result and all that stuff.
“For me, it was a chance for me to be completely honest with myself and speak from the heart.
“Ultimately, for me, that’s the way I can learn from those moments and experiences and try not to make the same mistakes again.”
De Minaur went on to reflect on a stellar year, as he achieved some impressive consistency and maintained his position at the top of the men’s game.
Going to the next level and reaching Grand Slam finals will be on his mind when he plays on home soil at the Australian Open next month, but he was happy with the consistency he displayed over the course of the season that came to an end with his appearance in the ATP Finals.
“Overall, it was my best year to date,” he stated. “There were some great moments and also some disappointments that I can learn from.
“Two guys in Jannik (Sinner) and Carlos (Alcaraz) won a lot of the big events and the challenge for all of us is to try and close the gap those two have opened up.”
Before he turns his thoughts to 2026, De Minaur is back in London to play at the UTS Grand Finals, where he was crowned as champion a year ago.
Alex de Minaur wins the 2024 UTS Grand Final
The fast, all-action format of tennis devised by Patrick Mouratoglou is proving to be a huge hit with packed audiences expected over the three-day event at London’s Copper Box and De Minaur is excited to be part of the show.
“It’s an exciting format of tennis,” he added, ahead of playing in an event that gives players on serve in matches divided up into four quarters. “I enjoyed playing here last year and can’t wait to get back out there again.
“It’s exciting and something different and it gives you a different view of how to play points. I’ve played a few of the UTS events now and I’ve enjoyed it. Having only one serve is an interesting mindset change and I enjoy trying to adapt to it.
“I find the noise and chaos of UTS a little easier to deal with when I know it’s coming and that’s the case in UTS. When everything is quiet, you hear every noise, but it’s never quiet at UTS and it showed me that I can play like that.
“You get used to the fact that the crowd are going nuts, screaming and the music is playing and it means you have to find a different way to focus in on playing points.”
The post Alex de Minaur opens up on his agonising press conference and makes an honest confession appeared first on Tennis365.
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