Australian tennis star Alex de Minaur is gearing up for a ferocious opening encounter at the 2024 Australian Open, drawn against formidable former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini in a first-round blockbuster.
A Brutal Opening Test
The tournament's sixth seed was handed no favours in the draw for his home Grand Slam, acknowledging he must be at his peak from the very first point when the season-opening major begins on Sunday. De Minaur holds a 2-3 head-to-head record against the Italian, who reached the semi-finals in Melbourne in 2022 and was once ranked world No.6. However, the Sydneysider can draw confidence from the fact his two victories over the 56th-ranked Berrettini both came on hard courts.
"Ultimately, every single player in the draw is extremely tough," de Minaur stated on Friday. "I knew going in that there were going to be many unseeded players which were going to be really tough match-ups. It's going to be a battle, but I'm looking forward to it. It basically just means that I'm going to have to be firing from the word go."
A Daunting Path to Glory
Should de Minaur navigate past the powerful Berrettini, his challenges will only intensify. A potential third-round clash looms with 29th seed Frances Tiafoe, followed by a possible round of 16 meeting with tenth seed Alexander Bublik. The quarter-finals could then present the ultimate hurdle: a showdown with world No.1 Carlos Alcaraz.
De Minaur has never progressed beyond the quarter-final stage at Melbourne Park, or any Grand Slam, and faces a monumental task to break that duck this year. He returns to a familiar setting, having occupied the same locker at the venue since his 2017 debut, but must now also contend with heightened off-court demands and the growing external "noise" surrounding Australia's 50-year wait for a local men's champion.
"It is something that I've got to manage," de Minaur admitted. "(I've got to) manage my energy levels of giving kind of my time out to everyone else, but also remind myself that I need to be selfish at times and think about myself and what's going to help me come out and perform. Because ultimately I'm here as a competitor to hopefully go deep at the Australian Open. That's my priority."
Preparations and Belief
His new year began with a loss to Casper Ruud at the United Cup, but de Minaur rebounded with confidence-building wins over Jakob Mensik and Hubert Hurkacz. He finalised his Australian Open preparations with an exhibition match against Alcaraz on Thursday night, which the Spaniard won in straight sets.
"I'm feeling really good," de Minaur said. "I'm hitting the ball great and I'm physically feeling really good, so I'm excited to get started. It's by no means going to be easy (but) I'm ready for the competition."
Fellow Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis believes defending champion Jannik Sinner and Alcaraz are "head and shoulders" above the field, but holds hope for his compatriot. De Minaur is yet to record a win against either player on tour (0-13 vs Sinner, 0-5 vs Alcaraz).
"Alex is good. Maybe he doesn't have the weapons like those two top guys do, but he brings a lot to the court," Kokkinakis said. "You never know what's going to happen on their day. Obviously his record against them hasn't been the best, but a grand slam is a long time. It's over a fortnight, so a lot of things can happen. If he keeps playing good tennis and staying healthy, you never know."
