Carlos Alcaraz said he went "out of my mind" during the second-set collapse that cost him his place at the China Open on Tuesday and handed Italy's Jannik Sinner a spot in the men's final against Daniil Medvedev in Beijing.
The world number two had chances to take a decisive lead in a breathless first set but it tipped Sinner's way when he cracked a blistering return off the Spaniard's second serve to take the all-important tie-break.
Alcaraz – the Wimbledon champion and tournament favourite in Novak Djokovic's absence – then fell apart, gifting Sinner three service games in an error-laden second set to give the world number seven a 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 victory.
Sinner and Medvedev will go toe-to-toe for the trophy.
"In the second set, I was out of my mind," said Alcaraz at a post-match news conference.
"I was just complaining a lot, (and) it's really difficult to play your best if you're complaining or mad at yourself," the 20-year-old added.
"(I've been) trying to take my chances. Today, (I didn't)," he said.
Sinner pointed to a key turning point when, serving at 2-1 in the second set, he recovered from 0-40 to open up a healthy lead.
"There are a couple of points (that) can change the momentum completely," the 22-year-old said.
"I managed somehow to win these kinds of moments today, which obviously helped me in the following games to stay very calm mentally and play with a lot of confidence," he said.
Earlier, third-ranked Medvedev hailed a "perfect service match" as he eased into the men's final with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Alexander Zverev.
The match got off to a close-fought start but Medvedev then notched a crucial break of serve and managed to see out the first set.
It was a similar story in the second set, with the Russian breaking for 5-3 and serving out the match with a pair of fierce aces.
"I don't think there was one bad thing I can say about my serve (today)," Medvedev said at a post-match news conference.
"I think the fact that the play was faster – the faster the court is, the easier you can hit aces... (and) the easier you feel when stepping into the serve," the 27-year-old said.
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