"I can pin him, hurt him, make his life uncomfortable" - Alex de Minaur gets candid about difference in facing Carlos Alcaraz & Jannik Sinner

Alex de Minaur made a surprising admission about facing Carlos Alcaraz versus Jannik Sinner following his second consecutive Rotterdam final loss. The Aussie opined that he had the tools to hurt the Spaniard but not Sinner.

De Minaur yet again fell one win short of the title at the 2025 ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam, losing to Carlos Alcaraz 6-4, 3-6, 6-2. At last year’s event, the Aussie player was beaten 7-5, 6-4 by Jannik Sinner.

Despite his loss to Alcaraz on Sunday, February 9, Alex de Minaur was optimistic about his chances against the Spaniard. While this was his third loss in as many matches, the Aussie pointed out that he has challenged Alcaraz in each of their three matches. The Rotterdam loss was preceded by a 6-7(4), 7-6(4), 6-4 loss at the 2022 Barcelona Open and a 6-4, 6-4 loss at the 2023 Queen’s Club Championships.

Meanwhile, against Jannik Sinner, De Minaur has only managed to take one set in 10 matches, trailing 0-10 in the head-to-head. Speaking to the media after falling short against Carlos Alcaraz, Alex de Minaur said:

"When I play Carlos, we always have very tough battles. It’s just about these matches going my way."

"It’s definitely a better matchup for me – playing Carlos," he added. "I feel, in ways, I can rush him a little bit; I can pin him and hurt him, and make his life uncomfortable. But I haven’t really managed to do that against Jannik yet, so tennis is all about matchups."

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Alex de Minaur on losing to Carlos Alcaraz in Rotterdam final: "Hopefully next time I'll get him"

De Minaur pictured at the 2025 ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam - Image Source: Getty

Alex de Minaur went on to reiterate that matchups play a crucial role in tennis. At present, the World No. 6 appears formidable against almost all opponents except Jannik Sinner.

"A lot of people in the tennis world know this. It’s the fun thing about tennis that not because one guy is ranked at a certain level and the other guy is ranked at a certain level, the higher ranked is always going to win," he told the media in Rotterdam.

"You often have different types, different playing styles that hurt more or hurt (certain players) less," de Minaur continued.

He further expressed that he believed he had what it takes to win the trophy against Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday but came up short.

"For me, I definitely fancied my chances today against Carlos," Alex de Minaur said. "I got close – it didn’t go my way, but hopefully next time I’ll get him."

Alex de Minaur would hope for revenge as he shifts his focus to the ATP 500 event in Doha (February 17-22), where he is set to be joined by the likes of Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Novak Djokovic.