Alex de Minaur has fallen short of winning the ATP Cinch Championship, going down to World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz in the final of the tournament.
After pulling off an upset in the semi-finals against Holger Rune, the Aussie star was outclassed by the Spaniard, losing 6-4 6-4 at London's Queen's Club overnight (AEST).
The 24-year-old had two break points for a chance to serve for the first set, but ultimately struggled to hold off Alcaraz, who is primed for a massive shot at a potential Wimbledon victory next month.
De Minaur said post-match he was pleased with his performance despite the disappointing loss.
“I’m content because I know I left it all out there and I try to play the way that I want to play,” he said.
“So that’s a big positive for me coming into Wimbledon.”
Carlos Alcaraz ready for Wimbledon challenge
After claiming yet another ATP title, the 20-year-old superstar is now poised to compete at the sport's most famous event in July and will be looking to topple favourite Novak Djokovic.
Alcaraz said post-match he hopes to have the crowd in his corner for Wimbledon.
“I have quite a lot of confidence heading into Wimbledon," he said.
"I ended the week playing at a high level, so right now I feel one of the favourites to win Wimbledon, but I have to get more experience on grass.
“Novak is the main favourite to win Wimbledon, but I will try to play at this level to have chances to beat him or make the final. I saw a statistic that Novak has won more matches at Wimbledon than the other top 20 players (combined).
"What can you say about that you know? Novak is the main favourite to win Wimbledon. That’s obvious - but I will try to play at this level, to have chances to beat him or make the final at Wimbledon.
“I saw that Djokovic has never lost a match on Centre Court since 2013 when he lost against Andy [Murray], so it’s ten years without losing a match on centre court, it’s crazy.
"I hope to have the crowd behind me to change that stat.”
