Alex de Minaur‘s hopes of emulating Lleyton Hewitt’s Australian Open feat from 20 years ago has been given a major boost, with potential fourth round opponent Stefanos Tsitsipas suffering a shock first round loss on Monday. And Ajla Tomljanovic has joined fellow Aussie Talia Gibson in the second round after an opening day of carnage for the local contingent that saw Daria Saville, Adam Walton, Omar Jasika and Li Tu all bow out in the first round.
De Minaur rose to World No.8 before the tournament started to give him an all-important top seeding at Melbourne Park, meaning he can’t face a higher-ranked opponent until the quarter-finals. The Aussie has never made it past the round of 16 at his home slam but has the best chance to do that this year, with de Minaur’s tournament kicking off on Tuesday against Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp.
And the Aussie’s path through to the last-eight became less treacherous on day two after 11th seed and former Australian Open finalist Tsitsipas went down to American Alex Michelsen in a shock four-set defeat. The Greek superstar pulled one set back after dropping the opening two stanzas against the World No.42, but Michelsen prevailed 7-5 6-3 2-6 6-4 to send Tsitsipas packing in shock scenes.
Alex de Minaur hoping to emulate Lleyton Hewitt
De Minaur made the quarter-finals at each of the last three grand slams in 2024, just like Hewitt did in 2004, before going on a dream run into the final of the 2005 Australian Open. De Minaur will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of Australia’s Davis Cup captain, but knows that a potential date with World No.1 and reigning Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner awaits in the last-eight.
De Minaur has lost all nine previous encounters against Sinner, with his last six defeats all coming in straight sets. But Aussie tennis legend Rafter – a two-time US Open champion and semi-finalist at Melbourne Park in 2001 – reckons the Aussie has his best chance yet to do something special at his home slam.
“Top-10 player, he’s playing great tennis. He’s at a pretty good age right now,” Rafter told AAP. “He’s played a lot of tennis, he knows the game well – people know his game but they also respect him a lot so he’s got a lot to offer. And one thing I love about Alex is that he gives himself the best opportunity every time he steps on the court. He’s just the ultimate professional.
“So I expect great competitive matches from Alex and I hope he does really well and that the draw opens up for him because, to me, he gives himself the best opportunity to go deep in tournaments because he’s always there. He’s always a tough presence on the court.”
Ajla Tomljanovic and Talia Gibson into second round
Monday’s day two action at the Australian Open saw Tomljanovic win a thriller against American Ashlyn Krueger 6-4 4-6 6-4 to join fellow Aussie Gibson in the second round. Tomljanovic edged a tight opening set against Krueger 6-4 and grabbed a crucial break against the American late in the second stanza but couldn’t consolidate as her opponent broke back twice to force the match into a deciding third set.
Tomljanovic took a double break to surge out to a 4-0 lead but still didn’t look completely comfortable in a match that contained multiple breaks. But the Aussie eventually held her nerve to seal a three-set thriller in two hours and 20 minutes.
Gibson became the first Aussie through to the second round after coming from a set down to beat Turkey’s Zeynep Sönmez 3-6 7-6(7/5) 6-1. It snapped a disastrous run of defeats for Australians in the first round after Saville went down to Russian World No.73 Anna Blinkova 1-6 6-4 7-5 despite looking in control in the early stages.
RELATED:
Fellow Aussie Walton was on the wrong end of a marathon match against Frenchman Quentin Halys, losing 4-6 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-4) 7-5 after midnight. Jaskika lost 6-2 3-6 6-2 6-2 against Hugo Gaston, while fellow Aussie Li Tu went down to 24th seed Jiri Lehecka, 6-1 3-6 6-3 7-6(7/1). The opening day at Melbourne Park was heavily affected by rain, with officials forced to shuffle things around and make up matches on Monday and Tuesday.
with AAP
