The world No 1 moved a step closer to accomplishing that with a 7-5 6-2 6-1 victory over Alex de Minaur<\/a>, a victory that saw the Spaniard raise his level and break new ground by advancing to his first semi-final at this tournament. After quarter-final defeats to Alexander Zverev<\/a> in 2024 and Novak Djokovic last year<\/a>, Alcaraz becomes the third-youngest man in the Open era to reach at least the semi-finals of all four majors, after Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. <\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Carlos Alcaraz celebrates reaching the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time (Getty Images)<\/p>\n After starting the year with such clear intentions<\/a>, Alcaraz is entering the business end of the tournament having found his stride. He reckons his form is close to the level it reached at the US Open in September<\/a>, when he completed a truly dominant summer with the \u201cperfect\u201d performance against his rival Jannik Sinner in the final. Like he was in New York, Alcaraz has been locked in from the start. He has marched through the draw without any dips and is yet to drop a set. <\/p>\n And, in another sign of how mature and consistent a performer the Spaniard has become in the 12 months since he lost his concentration in a distracted performance against Djokovic, Alcaraz said the key to his run in Melbourne has been how he has built through the tournament. <\/p>\n \u201cThis is my first official tournament of the year, but for me sometimes I’m not that patient,\u201d he said. \u201cIn the first match, I just really want to play at my best level. This is almost impossible. You have to get the rhythm of the competition again.<\/p>\n \u201cI left the court in the first round happy with my level, how I just felt on the court. My team told me, be patient. Your level, the level you want to play is going to come, for sure. You got to just keep trying, keep pushing yourself, and you will get where you want to be.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it’s been a great work so far of patience, of trying, of pushing yourself and just I\u2019m happy to see where my level is right now.\u201d<\/p>\n For De Minaur, who carried Australia\u2019s hopes once again into the quarter-finals, the sixth seed was left to deal with running into an opponent who was too strong. Alcaraz came out of the blocks to hit eight winners in three games. De Minaur deserved credit for a matching Alcaraz and making the first set as competitive as it was, but the top seed was unrelenting once he broke clear and sucked the life out of his opponent\u2019s challenge. <\/p>\n \u201cWhen I played him in the exhibition just before the tournament, I thought his level was freakishly good,\u201d De Minaur said. \u201cTonight was pretty similar. I do think he’s playing at a very high level. Ultimately, he\u2019s No 1 in the world for a reason.\u201d<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Carlos Alcaraz is congratulated by Alex de Minaur after the 7-5 6-2 6-1 win (AP)<\/p>\n Alcaraz will have the chance to show how far he has come when he faces Zverev in the semi-finals on Friday. They played a practice set before the tournament, won by Alcaraz 7-6 and described as a \u201chigh level of tennis, high level of intensity\u201d, but their head-to-head on the tour stands at six wins each. <\/p>\n![\"Carlos](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2258476938.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Carlos](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SEI282459191.jpeg\")
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