For the first time in his career, Alex de Minaur has wowed his home crowd and reached the last eight of the Australian Open.
The Australian number one has been knocking on the door for a little while and the hopes of Australia sit with De Minaur when it comes to the men’s game.
Not since Lleyton Hewitt won Wimbledon in 2002 has a male player from the country lifted a Grand Slam title and De Minaur will now hope to put Australia back on the map when it comes to tennis.
His chances of winning the title this year perhaps do feel slim. Next up, he has to face the world number one Jannik Sinner who is on course to defend the title that he won for the first time last year.
Alex de Minaur shares what Lleyton Hewitt has advised him to do
In some senses, De Minaur has the perfect role model in Hewitt as he bids for a first Grand Slam. The Australia Davis Cup captain was not too dissimilar to De Minaur and there are definitely some similarities.
The 25-year-old has now reached the quarter-final at all four Grand Slams and the next challenge is to press ahead and get through to the final few days of a major tournament and try to win one.
After beating American wonderkid Alex Michelsen, the Sydney native was quizzed on his relationship and was asked whether or not Hewitt has been giving out any advice from the coaching box.
He said in his press conference: “He’s been my Davis Cup Captain for a while now, and I have learned a lot through him. I have picked his brain many, many times. You know, ultimately one of my biggest goals the last couple of years was to perform at the slams.
“More than anything, his advice has always been that, you know, the first week of a slam is there to find a way and get through. Doesn’t matter how you do it, whether it’s pretty or ugly, you just got to find a way to get yourself to the second week, because in the second week of a slam, anything can happen. You start playing with confidence. You have played four matches already, feeling the conditions, the balls, the atmosphere, and then you’re not that far off from the big title.
“So that’s the kind of mindset I have had the last couple of slams, get through the first week and then we’ll see what happens.”
Alex de Minaur vs Jannik Sinner head-to-head
It’s fair to say that the odds are going to be firmly stacked against De Minaur when the two players meet in the quarter-finals.
The two players have met nine times in their professional careers and remarkably Sinner has won all nine of the matches that the pair have played.
De Minaur does technically have one victory over Sinner. However, he never had to unpack his bag to claim the win, with the Italian giving him a walkover at the ATP Masters event in Canada back in 2023.
The only time the pair have met in a Grand Slam came at the Australian Open in 2022 when Sinner came through in three sets at the last 16 stage.
De Minaur will be hoping to get himself one on the board when the two meet at this year’s event and with Hewitt’s words ringing in his ears, perhaps he can cause a significant shock.
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