ALARMING DE MINAUR STATISTIC AFTER ALCARAZ LOSS IN BARCELONA

Alex de Minaur has once again fallen to Carlos Alcaraz. (Getty/Joan Valls)

Another opportunity to defeat Carlos Alcaraz has highlighted a lopsided statistic against Alex de Minaur after his exit from the Barcelona Open.

In a rematch of the Rotterdam final two months ago, the 26-year-old Australian bowed out in straight sets to Alcaraz (7-5 6-3) in their quarter-final match-up at the ATP 500 event, despite leading by a break midway through the opening set.

Shop with a 15% storewide discount code: SERVE15 - excludes clearance items, machines, court equipment and gift cards at www.tennisdirect.com.au

Bidding to secure his third title in Barcelona, Alcaraz admitted post-match that it wasn't a smooth ride against the Aussie No.1.

"I started quite badly with the serve, I was struggling a little bit mentally with [it]," said Alcaraz, who is on a 13-match undefeated streak in Barcelona. "It was just the first few games with my serve, then I think I improved a lot. I calmed myself down and started to think positively again. Alex started strong, playing aggressively, and the first set was really tight."

De Minaur's defeat now extends his unfavourable head-to-head record over the four-time Grand Slam winner to 0-4.

The world No.7 also owns a combined 0-14 record over Alcaraz and world No.1 Jannik Sinner, with the latter winning all 10 of his previous meetings.

Furthermore, world No.3 Alexander Zverev has a positive 8-2 record over de Minaur, resulting in the Aussie winning just two of his overall 24 matches against the current top-3.

After losing his 50th tour-level quarter-final, de Minaur hopes to bounce back at the Madrid Masters 1000 tournament, which will commence next week.

In the later quarter-final, Stefanos Tsitsipas retired trailing 0-2 in the first set against French power-hitter Arthur Fils, setting up a mouthwatering semi-final date with Alcaraz.

Brighton Sports is the one-stop shop for all things tennis and squash in Melbourne's Bayside region. Leading brands supported by expert knowledge and a business that puts back into the tennis community. Visit: www.brightonsports.com.au