Alex de Minaur’s $10 million gamble sensationally backfires as Aussie stunned by veteran Marin Cilic

Aussie tennis star Alex de Minaur has been left to ponder what could have been after a risky call proved incredibly costly.

Alex de Minaur finds himself on the brink of falling out of the men’s top 10 after the decision to relinquish his Mexican Open title to chase $10 million sensationally backfired.

The Aussie was stunned by Marin Cilic on Tuesday night in the first round of the Dubai Tennis Championships, rounding out an unsuccessful fortnight for the 26-year-old in the Middle East.

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De Minaur’s 2-6 6-3 3-6 loss to the World No. 187 came as a huge shock and marked the first time since June that he failed to make at least the quarter-finals of a tournament he featured in.

It comes after the Aussie enjoyed a stellar last 12 months and dominated at Acapulco the past two years.

The ranking points he received from last year’s Mexican Open triumph saw him break into the top 8 and in turn, qualify for the lucrative ATP Finals.

However, De Minaur took a big gamble this year to chase more ranking points and cash by opting to play in Qatar and Dubai, with the prize money from both events worth $4.7m and $5.4m respectively.

But safe to say it didn’t go to plan for de Minaur.

Alex de Minaur’s $10m gamble sensationally backfired. Picture: Michael Klein

Last week de Minaur crashed out in the quarter-finals in Doha to eventual winner Andrey Rublev, before being dumped out in the first round of Acapulco.

So whether it was in search of a bumper payday or so he could spend more time with fiancee Katie Boulter – who was meant to be playing at the respective WTA tournaments but withdrew with a foot injury – after being sent packing in the first round of the ATP Dubai tournament, de Minaur is now at risk of tumbling out of the top 10.

Alex de Minaur lost in the first round in Dubai. (Photo by Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)

De Minaur has dropped to No. 9 in the world following his loss to Cilic.

And Tommy Paul, ranked World No. 10, will leapfrog the Aussie in the rankings with one more win at the Mexican Open, as he looks to capitalise on the Aussie’s absence in Acapulco.

While current World No. 11 Stefanos Tsitsipas, who is playing in Dubai, and World No. 12 Ben Shelton, who is playing in Acapulco, are hot on De Minaur’s heels and looking to break back into the men’s top 10.

It comes after just two weeks ago De Minaur reached a career-high ranking of World No. 6, overtaking tennis legend Novak Djokovic.

Originally published as Alex de Minaur’s $10 million gamble sensationally backfires as Aussie stunned by veteran Marin Cilic