Alex de Minaur made light work of his first four opponents in New York, but trouble lies ahead…
Dropping just one set en route to the US Open quarterfinals, De Minaur defeated Christopher O’Connell, Shintaro Mochizuki, Daniel Altmaier, and Leandro Reidi.
Standing between De Minaur and a maiden Grand Slam semifinal is Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime, who has already knocked out Alexander Zverev and Andrey Rublev at Flushing Meadows.
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If De Minaur were to make his way past Auger-Aliassime, he’d likely play the world number one and defending champion, Jannik Sinner, in the last four.
Previewing the potential semifinal matchup, Australian tennis legend John Fitzgerald has suggested whether he would give De Minaur any chance of picking up the win.
John Fitzgerald says Alex de Minaur can beat Jannik Sinner, but will need to play ‘out of his shoes’
Appearing as a guest on ‘The Tennis’ podcast, seven-time Grand Slam doubles champion Fitzgerald commented on De Minaur’s chances against Sinner.
“A deliberate hesitation, I think. It’s a bit like a heavyweight against a featherweight in a way,” he said.
“Alex [De Minaur] is a top ten player, he’s a seriously good player, but everything is going to have to go right, I think. If he is to beat Felix [Auger-Aliassime], if we can assume that for a second, and in honesty we can’t, because that’s a big match to come, but whoever gets through that, if it’s Alex, and he plays Jannik [Sinner], recent history has told a pretty solid tale.”
Fitzgerald proceeded to outline what De Minaur will need to do if he wants to beat Sinner at the US Open.
“It’s the power of Sinner that is just overwhelming. He doesn’t miss, but the ball is coming like a freight train at you all the time; that’s hard for a player of the stature of Alex de Minaur,” he said.
“As great a player as he is, to deal with that, especially over five sets, if it was best of three, it can be a different story, I think Alex will acknowledge that he’s going to have to play out of his shoes to beat Sinner at this stage of a Grand Slam, especially after Sinner has been reasonably rested so far, to take it to him.
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“It’s not beyond anyone to beat a great player at any given moment, but it’s always harder, I think, at the Slams than it is at a normal tournament where it is best of three, and you can shock a player early, quickly, put them on the back foot early and win in two straight.
“Winning three sets in a best-of-five is a whole different story.
“Can he do it? Yes, he can do it, but the odds are against him, against Sinner, I guess, at this stage.”
The odds are certainly against De Minaur, especially when looking at his and Sinner’s head-to-head record.
Alex de Minaur is 0-10 against Jannik Sinner on the ATP Tour
De Minaur and Sinner have met ten times previously on the ATP Tour, with the Italian winning on all ten occasions.
MatchWinnerLoserScore2019 Next Gen Finals – FJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur4-2, 4-1, 4-22020 Sofia – QFJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur6-7, 6-4, 6-12022 Australian Open – 4RJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur7-6, 6-3, 6-42022 Madrid Open – 2RJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur6-4, 6-12023 Canadian Open – FJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur6-4, 6-12023 Davis Cup Finals – FJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur6-3, 6-02024 Rotterdam Open – FJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur7-5, 6-42024 ATP Finals – RRJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur6-3, 6-42024 Davis Cup Finals – SFJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur6-3, 6-42025 Australian Open – QFJannik SinnerAlex de Minaur6-3, 6-2, 6-1Alex de Minaur and Jannik Sinner’s head-to-head record
The world number one has been so dominant against De Minaur that he has only ever dropped one set to the Aussie, leading him 23-1.
The pair met earlier this year in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, where Sinner swept De Minaur aside on Rod Laver Arena.
De Minaur would no doubt love an 11th chance to beat Sinner in New York, but won’t want to get too far ahead of himself as he first prepares for his quarterfinal match.
The world number eight will play Auger-Aliassime, and Sinner will play Lorenzo Musetti in the US Open quarterfinals on Wednesday, September 3.