diff --git a/lib/librte_eal/common/eal_common_proc.c b/lib/librte_eal/common/eal_common_proc.c
index 74bc30017b..ad02c00316 100644
--- a/lib/librte_eal/common/eal_common_proc.c
+++ b/lib/librte_eal/common/eal_common_proc.c
@@ -525,6 +525,7 @@ async_reply_handle(void *arg __rte_unused)
 		wait_for_async_messages();
 
 		if (gettimeofday(&now, NULL) < 0) {
+			pthread_mutex_unlock(&pending_requests.lock);
 			RTE_LOG(ERR, EAL, "Cannot get current time\n");
 			break;
 		}