Alex de Minaur's reward for making a maiden Australian Open quarter-final sees him take on bete noire and defending champion Jannik Sinner in Wednesday's last-eight match.
The Demon made light work of seed-eliminating Alex Michelsen in straight sets, and the home hope aims to end his losing run against the ailing top seed, whose physical decline against Holger Rune could not prevent a 15th consecutive ATP Tour quarter-final.
Match preview
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Sinner overcame several interruptions for him, Rune and a damaged net to seal a fourth-round Aussie Open victory over the Dane to advance to another quarter-final Down Under and his 15th on the trot on the tour.
The defending champion's quest for a last-eight berth seemed in danger when he seemingly fell ill during the match – he later revealed he was unwell before the fourth-round encounter – and was on the ropes after losing the second set and saving break points early in the third.
However, a medical timeout led to the world No. 1's recovery, and he sealed a four-set 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory, improving to 3-2 in his head-to-head with the Danish player, to reach a third quarter-final at Melbourne Park.
With that triumph, Sinner's winning run at the Aussie Open stretches to 11, while his 18-match streak of victories at the hard-court Majors highlights his dominance on the surface.
Advancing past Rune saw the Italian improve to 44-3 since rising to the No. 1 ranking, a 93.6% win rate, surpassing Bjorn Borg's 91.9% win percentage as the highest-ranked player on the men's tour since 1973, and the 23-year-old aims for a 45th against a motivated opponent.
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Despite De Minaur's inability to ever get the better of Sinner, this year's encounter at his home Slam presents an opening for the eighth seed due to the top seed's seeming struggles against Rune.
The Demon's preparation for his quarter-final test saw him come through the tricky challenge of the 20-year-old Michelsen, who eliminated seeded opponents in previous rounds – 11th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in round one and seed No. 19 Karen Khachanov in the third.
Notching a comfortable straight-set 6-0, 7-6(5), 6-3 success over the talented United States player not only took the 25-year-old Australian No. 1 into the quarters of his home Slam for the first time but also ended the nation's wait for an Aussie Open quarter-finalist since Nick Kyrgios's 2015 run.
However, De Minaur will hope for a happier last-eight match than the brazen Aussie, who exited in straight sets ten years back at the hands of eventual finalist Andy Murray.
Backed by the home crowd inside Rod Laver Arena on Wednesday, the Demon hopes to profit from raucous support and an unwell top seed to make a maiden Grand Slam semi-final.
Tournament so far
Jannik Sinner:
First round: vs. Nicolas Jarry 7-6[2] 7-6[5] 6-1
Second round: vs. Tristan Schoolkate 4-6 6-4 6-1 6-3
Third round: vs. Marcos Giron 6-3 6-4 6-2
Round of 16: vs. Holger Rune 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-2
Alex de Minaur:
First round: vs. Botic van de Zandschulp 6-1 7-5 6-4
Second round: vs. Tristan Boyer 6-2 6-4 6-3
Third round: vs. Francisco Cerundolo 5-7 7-6[3] 6-3 6-3
Round of 16: vs. Alex Michelsen 6-0 7-6[5] 6-3
Head To Head
Davis Cup Finals (2024) - Semi-final: Sinner 6-3 6-4
ATP Finals (2024) - Round robin: Sinner 6-3 6-4
Rotterdam Open (2024) - Final: Sinner 7-5 6-4
Davis Cup Finals (2023) - Final: Sinner 6-3 6-0
National Bank Open (2023) - Final: Sinner 6-4 6-1
Madrid Open (2022) - Second round: Sinner 6-4 6-1
Australian Open (2022) - Fourth round: Sinner 7-6[3] 6-3 6-4
Sofia Open (2020) - Quarter-final: Sinner 6-7[3] 6-4 6-1
Next Gen ATP Finals (2019) - Final: Sinner 4-2 4-1 4-2
Sinner's dominance of the Aussie player has seen him claim victories in all nine encounters, strikingly only dropping a set in their first encounter on the men's tour in Sofia five years back.
Wednesday's encounter will be their second Down Under, with the Italian claiming a three-set victory in the tournament's fourth round three years ago.
De Minaur enters his maiden quarter-final match unbeaten this season, and he could improve his 6-0 winning streak at the expense of the top seed.
However, the eighth seed is 0-6 against top-10 opponents coming into his match-up with Sinner and 2-10 overall at Grand Slams against the elite – beating Kei Nishikori at the US Open in 2019 and Daniil Medvedev at last year's Roland Garros.
We say: Sinner to win in four sets
Playing on home turf and against an indisposed opponent, De Minaur may never have a better opportunity against Sinner.
While Wednesday's outcome is contingent on the ailing Italian's recovery, 48 hours of recuperation should be to the top seed's benefit before facing the Aussie at Rod Laver Arena.
We back the world No. 1 for victory in four tight sets, thus sealing a place in consecutive semi-finals at Melbourne Park to set up a match-up with Ben Shelton or compatriot Lorenzo Sonego.
