Alex de Minaur goes from "very, very dark spot" to ATP Finals semifinals

What a difference two days makes. Alex de Minaur could only feel relief after scoring a much-sought after win at the ATP Finals on Thursday, a feeling that only got better when he officially qualified for the semifinals after Carlos Alcaraz's win over Lorenzo Musetti.

Read more: Carlos Alcaraz clinches 2025 year-end No. 1 ranking after victory over Musetti at ATP Finals

De Minaur confessed to being in a "very dark place" after losing to Lorenzo Musetti on Tuesday, in a match where he held match point, to drop to 0-2 this year in Turin, and 0-5 at the ATP Finals for his career. But after a 7-6(3), 6-3 win over Taylor Fritz, de Minaur said he found the silver lining in the clouds ahead of the match by making "peace" with whatever the result was.

THE MODERATOR: Alex, congrats. A very good win after a very tough loss. Can you tell us how you came in, your mentality for the match.

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, I mean, sport (smiling)...

Couple days ago was one of the toughest days I've had in my career. I was in a very, very dark spot. I could tell you that I hated the sport. Here we are two days later and I'm feeling great about myself (smiling). It's incredible.

But more than anything, regardless of the result today, I had made peace with myself. That was a big, big moment. I knew the way I wanted to play. I was going to commit to it from the first point to the last. I was okay with the result not going my way. I had made peace with that. I just wanted to play my way.

More than anything, it felt good to play on my terms.

Later, the Aussie added that his team and fiancée Katie Boulter were key in navigating the complex emotions he was feeling.

Q. When did that making peace with yourself actually click in? Was it that night? Next morning? Did you have to be on your own completely? Even when you were in that 'dark place', did you reflect back on what you actually achieved this year? You're second only at the moment now to Alcaraz for match wins, lead the tour with hard court wins. If you could, reflect on that.

ALEX de MINAUR: To be honest, I'm incredibly lucky with the support system that I have, the people I've got around me, every single one in my team, even Katie. They were able to, or they tried to, talk some sense into me and get me out of a very dark place.

Sometimes when you're in that dark place, you make peace. You start to care less, right? Ultimately you can focus on other elements and not the results.

For the first time in a long time, I forgot about the what if's, the results, what happens if I miss this shot, what happens if I lose this match. I just committed to the way I wanted to play from the first point to the last. A couple days ago I didn't. That's what hurt so much.

Today I knew that no matter what, I wanted to be proud of my decision making, my aggressive mindset, and I wanted to go out there and try to win the match.

De Minaur will have to navigate an entirely different challenge as just the third Australian man to make the year-end semifinals up next. He is 0-12 against defending champion Jannik Sinner.