Alex de Minaur picked up his first title of the season last time out, as he began his US Open preparations.
Travelling to DC, De Minaur defeated Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in a three-set thriller to clinch the Washington Open title.
The title was De Minaur’s 10th of his career, as the Australian returned to the top ten following the tournament.
Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images
Carrying that momentum forward to the Canadian Open, De Minaur eased into the third round with a straight-sets win over Francisco Comesana.
Playing some of the best tennis of his ATP Tour career, De Minaur will no doubt be hoping to make a deep run in New York next month.
Assessing his US Open chances, one former Aussie tennis star has said what will need to happen for De Minaur to win the title at Flushing Meadows.
Luke Saville says the draw will need to ‘open up’ for Alex de Minaur to win the US Open
During the latest episode of ‘The Tennis’, 2020 Australian Open doubles finalist Luke Saville responded when asked if De Minaur can win the US Open.
“It is definitely tough,” he said.
“I think I saw a clip the other day that he just keeps rocking up, every Grand Slam, and he is making the fourth round, quarterfinal.
Grand SlamPerformanceOpponentScore2024 Australian OpenLost in 4RAndrey Rublev4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 3-6, 0-62024 French OpenLost in QFAlexander Zverev4-6, 6-7, 4-62024 WimbledonLost in QFNovak DjokovicW/O2024 US OpenLost in QFJack Draper3-6, 5-7, 2-62025 Australian OpenLost in QFJannik Sinner3-6, 2-6, 1-62025 French OpenLost in 2RAlexander Bublik6-2, 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 2-62025 WimbledonLost in 4RNovak Djokovic6-1, 4-6, 4-6, 4-6Alex de Minaur’s results at Grand Slams since the beginning of 2024
“I think if we are honest, we probably just need a little bit of a draw opening because those top two [Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz], especially, are pretty unreal right now, and if they keep going, he has to beat both of them to win a Slam.
“It is difficult, to say the least.
“So we need a little bit of love, but he is definitely showing up at every Grand Slam and getting into that second week consistently, so it’s great to see.”
Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images
De Minaur certainly won’t be the favorite to win the US Open, but could well enter the tournament as a ‘dark horse’, having picked up several good results at the event over the years.
Alex de Minaur’s impressive record at the US Open
The 26-year-old has won more matches at the Australian Open and US Open (18) than at any other Grand Slam event.
On two occasions, De Minaur has qualified for the quarterfinals in New York, and he’ll likely be a contender to reach a third in 2025.
Grand SlamBest resultWin/Loss recordWin %Australian OpenQF – 202518-869%French OpenQF – 20248-947%WimbledonQF – 202413-668%US OpenQF – 2020, 202418-869%Alex de Minaur’s Grand Slam record
Entering his fourth US Open tournament in 2020, De Minaur qualified for his first Grand Slam quarterfinal, picking up four impressive wins en route to the last 16.
2020 US Open 1R – Alex de Minaur defeated Andrej Martin2020 US Open 2R – Alex de Minaur defeated Richard Gasquet2020 US Open 3R – Alex de Minaur defeated Karen Khachanov2020 US Open 4R – Alex de Minaur defeated Vasek Pospisil
Looking to advance to the semifinals, De Minaur took on Austria’s Dominic Thiem, but came up short, losing out to the eventual champion in straight sets, 1-6, 2-6, 4-6.
Returning to the US Open quarterfinals four years later, De Minaur met British star Jack Draper.
Unfortunately for De Minaur, injury issues prevented him from playing his best tennis on Arthur Ashe Stadium as he fell in straight sets.
He’ll be hoping for a better showing this time around, and could be well placed to do so if he can maintain his current level.
There’s still work to be done before he heads to New York, however, as De Minaur prepares for his Canadian Open third-round clash with his countryman Christopher O’Connell on Friday, August 1.