Alex de Minaur wants to gatecrash the world’s top 10 as soon as this year, with his confidence at a sky-high level after beating Daniil Medvedev, Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem since November.
But the 23-year-old was less keen on Friday to discuss his relationship with fellow Australian star Nick Kyrgios, saying only they had not spoken ahead of the Open, before media minders shut down Kyrgios-related questions.
Alex de Minaur is looking forward to another opportunity at the Australian Open.Credit:AP
De Minaur starts his Australian Open campaign against Taiwanese qualifier Hsu Yu-hsiou, who is making his grand slam debut, before a tricky path ahead, including a potential fourth-round clash with nine-time champion Novak Djokovic.
He is excited rather than daunted at the extra attention playing in a home grand slam naturally brings.
“I’ve been watching [Hsu] in the qualifiers and seen his results, so we’ll be doing a lot of scouting with the team to look at his matches and see how we prepare for that match tactically,” de Minaur said.
“I don’t like to look at the draws much, but ultimately the media are always going to look very far ahead … the way I see it; I’ve got to focus on my first-round opponent, then we’ll go from there.
“It would be [special], for sure, [to play Djokovic]. These are the types of matches I want to be playing, and that’s where you want to be, so I’ll do my best to put myself in that position, and hopefully give myself a good chance to play against the best in the world.”
Alex de Minaur on the move against Andy Murray at the Kooyong Classic on Thursday.Credit:AP
De Minaur typically dodges off-court drama, but Kyrgios’ reluctance to play Davis Cup for Australia – he last represented his country more than three years ago – dragged him into that ongoing topic.
Both de Minaur and Australia’s Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt revealed last year they unsuccessfully tried to bring the nation’s top-ranked player back into the fold.
Kyrgios planned to compete in the United Cup this month before an ankle injury caused him to withdraw, but even that caused a storm when Hewitt was critical of how he communicated his status.
De Minaur and Kyrgios could meet in the Australian Open quarter-finals if they can both negotiate difficult draws.
The world No. 24, whose career-high ranking is 15, is aiming to make more deep runs at the world’s biggest tournaments to ignite his top-10 ambition.
“As the person I am, as the player I am, I’m not satisfied where I am right now, so I want to keep improving and, for me, that’s [top 10] the next step, and it’s just about getting there now,” de Minaur said.
“I’m feeling great, playing some great tennis, feeling mentally fresh [and] physically fresh … this year I feel a bit better than I did the year before.
“That’s just been what I’ve been trying to accomplish my whole career – improving every day and getting a bit better than the day before, and I’m excited to get my Aussie Open campaign started.
“I think I’ve always had the level to beat these guys, but now it’s the belief, after getting a few of those breakthrough wins, it’s very much possible and doable every week … I know that I can take it to these top guys.”
Watch the Australian Open live and free on the 9Network – Channel 9 and 9Gem.
