Alex de Minaur’s 2026 season on the ATP Tour has been a fairly successful one so far.
Ranked sixth in the world currently, De Minaur reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in January and clinched the 11th title of his career in Rotterdam during February.
Following his triumph in the Netherlands, however, the Australian entered the Mexican Open in Acapulco, where he suffered a shocking first-round exit.
Will Alex de Minaur ever reach a Grand Slam semifinal?
What is Alex de Minaur’s ceiling?
De Minaur lost to American qualifier Patrick Kypson, who delivered the upset after emerging victorious in the decisive third-set tiebreak.
Ahead of his run at the first ATP Masters 1000 event of the season in Indian Wells, the 27-year-old reflected on the disappointment in Mexico.
Alex de Minaur reflects on his short-lived run at the Mexican Open
In an interview with Tennis TV, De Minaur said: “I think the way I see Acapulco, it wasn’t, you know, it’s just, it’s a tough place to play tennis sometimes, and as we’ve seen, a lot of the seeds, you know, do often drop out there, and I felt like a match that just slipped away, and it just wasn’t my day.
“I don’t think you’ve got to throw a full season away because of one match, and that’s the way I’ve focused on it.
“So it’s just been about getting back on these courts, feeling the conditions, feeling the balls and getting ready for, you know, the next two Masters.
“Obviously, we were able to come here quite early, and it’s a pretty nice place to be. We’re definitely looking forward to it.
What does Alex de Minaur need to change to challenge Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner?
“We’ve been able to kind of get back on the right time, we’ve got beautiful heat, got out there, some good hours of practice, and just kind of re-centred myself a little bit and got back to where I wanted to go.
“It was a tough exit, first round, I had my chances, but in the grand scope of things, I’ve had a pretty good start of the year, so I’m happy with the level and looking forward to coming here and hopefully being able to continue that good level.”
Alex de Minaur’s first opponent at the Indian Wells Open
After receiving a bye to the second round due to his ranking, De Minaur’s first round opponent at the Indian Wells Open will either be Francisco Comesana or Sebastian Korda.
He has faced Comesana just once before, beating the Argentine in the second round of the 2025 Canadian Open.
De Minaur has played Korda four times, however, and has a winning record of 4-1 against him.
The American’s sole victory in the head-to-head came at Wimbledon in 2021, where he came out on top in four sets.
Despite losing their next three meetings, Korda has since enjoyed a hot run of form, having won the Delray Beach Open, and will look to continue the purple patch in Indian Wells.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
