De Minaur ready to shoot to join the tennis elite

Alex de Minaur has dismissed concerns that a four-day playing break at Wimbledon may have left him under-cooked for a match which could propel him into the elite of men’s tennis.

De Minaur would move to sixth from his current career-high ninth in the ATP’s live world rankings should he defeat French whizz kid Arthur Fils in the last-16 on Monday to reach a maiden Wimbledon quarter-final.

The 25-year-old Sydneysider has so far enjoyed the most simple passage to the second week, with two straight-set wins and a walkover.

Yet that’s been accompanied by suggestions it’s been almost too easy for de Minaur, with the third-round walkover against injured Lucas Pouille meaning he won’t have played since his comfortable win over Jaume Munar on Thursday.

Asked if the long gap between contests might leave him not quite battle-hardened enough after his long pre-Wimbledon competitive break following an early exit at Queen’s Club, de Minaur sounded unfazed.

“For me, I never really worry about how many matches or how many tennis balls I’ve hit. I don’t lack in that regard,” he said.

“I’ve played enough matches throughout the year, and even on the grass,” said de Minaur, one of the tour’s busiest players who will be playing his 48th match of 2024 and will be seeking a 34th win.

“So I don’t feel much, one way or the other.

“Obviously, you always want to play but sometimes you get dealt these cards, and the gap between matches means I just get a couple of practice days to get ready for my next one.”

Adamant that he’s lucky to have had such a kind week’s passage in the rain-hit programme, victory over Fils could potentially elevate de Minaur to a rarefied position that only six other Australian men have ever reached in the 51 years of the ATP rankings that ere launched in 1973.

A top-six place would put him alongside Lleyton Hewitt, John Newcombe and Patrick Rafter, who all got to No.1, Ken Rosewall (No.2), Rod Laver (No.3) and Pat Cash (No.4).

But it won’t be easy with the powerful youngster Fils having already demonstrated his danger by eventually overpowering de Minaur in straight sets on the Barcelona clay in April.

The Australian is wary of the 20-year-old’s weapons, especially after Fils was beating one of the tournament favourites, Hubert Hurkacz, when the Pole had to pull out with injury.

“Fils, he’s coming with a lot of confidence, obviously beating Hubie which is a very good one on the surface,” said de Minaur.

“He’s got a big game. Big groundstrokes. In previous years, I probably wouldn’t have thought he would have enjoyed the grass as much, but he’s obviously enjoying it and feeling comfortable on it.

“So he’s going to be very tricky. He’s got a great serve as well, an overall great athlete.”

Fils believes the same about de Minaur. “We played on clay last time, so it’s completely different. He’s one of the best on the surface for sure,” said the Parisian.

“He’s one of the fastest guys I know. He’s so quick it’s like if I want to hit one winner, I will have to hit three winners against him. Everyone knows he’s fast, but he is also super clever on the court.

“He’s been doing unbelievable since the start of the year, so it’s not going to be easy.”