Alex de Minaur has suffered Rotterdam Open final heartbreak for the second year running, this time losing to Carlos Alcaraz.
Alcaraz now has his first indoor title after winning the Rotterdam Open, where he beat De Minaur 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 in their final clash.
De Minaur has congratulated Alcaraz on the success, with the duo having played their first tournament since last month’s Australian Open.
And both reached the quarter-finals in Melbourne, with De Minaur losing to Jannik Sinner and Alcaraz losing to Djokovic.
It represented a familiar feeling for the Australian, who also lost to the Italian in the 2024 Rotterdam Open final.
Alex de Minaur repeats Jannik Sinner message to Carlos Alcaraz after Rotterdam Open final
The 25-year-old has, however, managed to remain in high spirits despite another near miss in the Netherlands.
“Ahhhhhh I don’t like you either Carlos Alcaraz,” De Minaur joked on Instagram. “Another great week here in ABN AMRO Open, I’ll get the title one day.”
That reaction comes after a similar message to Sinner this time last year, when the Australian wrote after the 2024 final: “I don’t like you anymore Jannik Sinner.”
Alex de Minaur back to career-high ranking after Rotterdam Open loss to Carlos Alcaraz
De Minaur will be gutted to have fallen short at the final hurdle once more, but he can be extremely proud of another strong Rotterdam Open showing.
He didn’t drop a single set on his way to the last two, and certainly troubled Alcaraz at times in their one hour, 54-minute meeting.
Moreover, he has now climbed two places in the ATP rankings to sixth, which represents a career-high rank for the Australian, which he also achieved last summer.
His climb coincides with rankings drops for Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev, who have both fallen one place to seventh and eighth respectively.
It has certainly been a strong start to the new season from De Minaur, who enjoyed his best-ever Australian Open run last month, and his joint-best Grand Slam finish.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
