THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 6, 2026

Alex De Minaur

Press Conference

F. COBOLLI/A. de Minaur

7-5, 7-6, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Alex, could you share some initial thoughts on the match today.

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, a tough one. Yeah, not too much to comment. I think overall, just not what I expected of myself.

Still, a credit to Flavio.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Where do you think you lost the match?

ALEX de MINAUR: I think breaking it down into possibly simpler terms, I think one of us went out to win the match, and the other went out not to lose the match.

I think it's pretty self-explanatory who was who.

Q. Seemed to be passive in those big moments. How frustrating is that for you not being able to take that back?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, it breaks me inside. That's the reality of it.

Many, many hours gets put into my craft, and countless years to kind of have moments like these. To not step up to the plate, it's truly gut wrenching.

Yeah, it's very tough.

Q. How do you explain that, though? You obviously knew what you wanted to do, but it didn't happen?

ALEX de MINAUR: Look, it's a funny old game, this one. It's probably a match that if I play the way I want to, I don't mind the matchup, especially on this surface. I think I've got lots of ways in which I can hurt him.

But if I don't play to my capabilities and more than that, I hinder myself, then it's not ideal, because obviously Flavio - credit to him - stepped up to the plate, especially in the big moments, came up with some big shots, and that was the difference, right?

How do you explain it? Just not good enough mentally. That's how you explain it.

Q. You have had some pretty hurtful losses over the years. Would this be one of the more painful ones that you're feeling?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, sadly, it just feels like they keep on coming. Yeah, it's not easy to take.

You go through moments in your career, times where you feel that there's, you know, opportunities to be taken, to take the next step, to make it to the next level, to become an even better version of yourself.

And to fall short constantly, you start doubting yourself. You start doubting whether you're going to be able to break through and kind of take it to the next step.

It's probably a combination of one side of me being tough on myself, but the other one is me being realistic. And as much as I'm in a great position, the fact that I want more and I'm not able to achieve more, it's a battle that I deal with every day.

This is just another one to add to kind of the tally.

Q. Take a bit longer to get over this one?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, I don't know. I won't play a tournament for a while. But again, like, they just accumulate, right? And kind of the goals, the beliefs, the dreams that you have, they kind of start fading away or they feel a little bit further away than when they once were.

Like, I feel like a couple of years ago, I was definitely closer to that. Now it just feels like I'm getting a little bit further away from those dreams.

Q. I realize this is all very fresh now, and it's probably at its worst right now. In your experience, when you've had tough losses like this, have you been able to find it again, find that sort of enthusiasm and belief that your best days are ahead still?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, I'm finding it harder. That's the reality of it.

Look, at the end of the day, I've got no other option, right? I'm not going to say, I've had enough, I'm hanging up the racquets.

It's fresh now. It hurts like hell now. But I'll get back up. I'm a competitor, you know, through and through. So I'll get back up, and I'll give myself another chance.

I just want it to kind of happen to keep giving me that hope. If not, this is a tough, tough sport to play with with no hope.

Q. I don't think I have ever asked you this question before, but listening to you and feeling like you're not progressing and you're not where you were two years ago, would you ever contemplate a different coaching arrangement?

ALEX de MINAUR: No, I really don't think that's the issue, really. I think it all comes down to myself and how I've dealt with certain situations, right?

Because, look, it's now down to tennis. We have practiced many times, and I've felt great in this kind of matchup. We practiced before the tournament started, right, and the issue is playing this match and playing like I've got the weight of the world on my shoulders. That's the issue, right? It gets brought up on myself.

I need to deal with it better, because if not, I'm just not going to be able to achieve, you know, the goals and dreams I've got, right? It's as simple as that.

I think the tennis is there to win these types of matches. The tennis is there, this tournament, the way it all looked to go deep, if I can just play tennis and not worry about anything else, right?

I wasn't able to do that, and that's why I'm in this position right now. And yeah, I either improve or we'll see the same results happen again and again.

Q. When you're feeling like this after a loss, after a devastating loss, what do you do? Do you just want to be left alone completely? Do you want to just go and smash some racquets? What happens soon after?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, let's just say the best thing probably for me is not to be kind of left alone, because I would probably, you know, spend a lot of time by myself and kind of, you know, dwelling on what just happened.

So what I'll try to do is go about my normal life. I've got some pretty big things happening soon, so some stuff that I'm very excited for. And I think my best way forward is to channel my focus into that, into something positive, and that should help, you know, put this in the past and get on with what's next.