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Frustrated Alex de Minaur has had the most scorching spell of his career on the clay courts doused in the semifinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters, going down in a nail-biting match to Italian Lorenzo Musetti. Seeking to become the first Australian since John Newcombe in 1969 to reach the final of the prestigious Masters 1000 event, de Minaur appeared on course for victory by blasting past Musetti 6-1 in the first set. ABC Sport Daily is your daily sports conversation.
We dive into the biggest story of the day and get you up to speed with everything else that's making headlines. But as rain began to niggle away and cause a short break to play, de Minaur's magic spell deserted him amid a sparkling comeback from Musetti, cheered to the rafters by a huge Italian contingent on Court Rainier III, and the Australian eventually succumbed 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) in two hours, 38 minutes. It meant world number 10 de Minaur missed out on a second final of the year against Carlo Alcaraz — his conqueror in the Rotterdam Open showdown in February — as the Spaniard had earlier defeated compatriot Alejandro Davidovich-Fokina 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 in the other semi.
De Minaur had enjoyed a fantastic week in Monte-Carlo, with a 6-0, 6-0 quarterfinal win over Grigor Dimitrov and a 6-2, 6-2 pounding of Daniil Medvedev in the last-16. The ABC of SPORT.
