"This victory brings me more relief than pleasure," De Minaur savors his qualification for the ATP Finals semi-finals

Despite only one win in three matches during the group stage, Alex De Minaur earned his ticket to the semi-finals of the ATP Finals for the very first time in his career.

De Minaur had done his part yesterday afternoon and was only waiting for a victory from Carlos Alcaraz against Lorenzo Musetti in the evening to secure his place in the semi-finals of the Turin Masters.

While he absolutely had to defeat the reigning finalist Taylor Fritz in two sets this Thursday, the Australian achieved this first objective (7-6, 6-3) and learned a few hours later of the Spaniard's success, which sends him to the semi-finals against Jannik Sinner. In the post-match press conference, the 26-year-old player discussed the last 48 hours during which he experienced various emotions.

"I reconciled with myself. This victory brings me more relief than pleasure. A few days ago, I experienced one of the toughest moments of my career, I hit rock bottom. I hated this sport, but today, two days later, I feel very good.

But above all, regardless of today's result, I reconciled with myself. It was a very, very important moment. I knew how I wanted to play. I was going to commit to it from the first to the last point. I didn't care if the result wasn't what I wanted, I just wanted to play my way. More than anything, I felt good playing the way I intended.

For the first time in a long time, I forgot the 'what ifs', the results, what would happen if I missed this shot, what would happen if I lost this match. I simply committed to playing the way I wanted, from the first to the last point. A few days ago, I didn't do that.

That's what hurt me so much. Today, I knew that no matter what, I wanted to be proud of my decisions, of my aggressive mindset, and I wanted to step onto the court to try and win the match.

This is my first win of the year against a top 10 player, and it hurts to say it, but I feel like I should have better results than that. This season, they just haven't come. To finally be able to get a win here in Turin, against someone who plays aggressive tennis, who has an incredible serve...

His ball speed is one of the highest on the tour. He played an incredible match against Carlos (Alcaraz). He hits the ball from the back of the court with a lot of power. Today, I dictated the play and stood up to him. It proves that I have that capability in my arsenal. I just need to step out of my comfort zone more often and prove it consistently," De Minaur assured Punto de Break.