Alex de Minaur has once again suffered the sinking feeling of losing a big ATP final to a top-10 opponent as he succumbed to Spanish superstar Carlos Alcaraz in three sets despite a typically doughty fight in the Rotterdam Open championship match.
The Australian No.1, who apparently had been feeling a bit under the weather all week at the Dutch event, still stretched the world No.3 in Sunday's showdown before succumbing 6-4 3-6 6-2.
It was the second successive year 'Demon' had been beaten in the indoor hard-court final, having been defeated in 2024 by the sport's other young rocket man, Jannik Sinner.
