Alex de Minaur has denied nice mate Jordan Thompson in a titanic all-Australian fourth-round US Open showdown to notch one more milestone in his stellar grand slam season.
De Minaur put friendship to the aspect to finish Thompson’s spirited marketing campaign with a hard-earned 6-0, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory to turn into the primary Australian since Lleyton Hewitt 20 years in the past to succeed in three consecutive grand slam quarterfinals.
His shares rising with each win, the tenth seed will subsequent face English world No.25 Jack Draper on Thursday morning (AEST) in an Ashes-like battle for a coveted place within the final 4.
After arriving in New York beneath a health cloud and with “low expectations”, de Minaur has regained perception and type to maneuver quietly into title reckoning.
Jordan Thompson had a irritating match in opposition to Alex de Minaur, lacking golden probabilities to take the ascendacy. (Getty Pictures: Jamie Squire)
Transferring freely and displaying no indicators of the hip damage that shattered his Wimbledon and Olympic desires, de Minaur confirmed his childhood pal and Davis Cup teammate little mercy.
Thompson fought tooth and nail and threatened to pull the match right into a deciding set earlier than de Minaur’s class and relentlessness in the end prevailed.
Thompson was diminished to bouncing his racquet into the courtroom in frustration whereas struggling the ignominy of a first-set bagel.
And even after Thompson lastly gained a recreation, then broke from 40-0 down to grab the second set, there was no let-up from de Minaur as he went swiftly again to work.
The French, Wimbledon and now US Open quarterfinalist regained the ascendancy to assert a two-sets-to-one lead, and there was extra racquet smashing and berating his field from Thompson as he sensed the match slipping away.
With one final stand, Thompson broke early within the fourth set to lift hopes of a well-known underdog comeback.
However there was nothing pleasant about de Minaur instantly placing again earlier than lastly subduing Thompson after a seesawing four-break fourth set to take victory after two hours 57 minutes.
For all of the first-week heroics of Thompson and Novak Djokovic slayer Alexei Popyrin, de Minaur is as soon as once more Australia’s final man standing on the season’s closing main.
The usual-bearer’s feat of creating three consecutive grand slam quarters is one which eluded even former world No.1 Ash Barty and former ladies’s US Open champion Samantha Stosur throughout distinguished careers.
No Australian has managed it since Hewitt in 2004-05.
The twin main winner adopted up forays to the final eight at Roland Garros and Wimbledon with expenses to successive finals at Flushing Meadows and Melbourne Park.
After additionally turning into the primary Australian since Hewitt 20 years in the past to make the second week of all 4 majors in a calendar yr, de Minaur will now be hoping to additional emulate his Davis Cup captain’s 2004 accomplishment by going all the way in which to the ultimate.
He has a golden alternative, with de Minaur having gained all three earlier encounters with Draper, together with the previous two on exhausting courts.
If he can proceed his march by way of the draw, de Minaur will meet both world No.1 Jannik Sinner, 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev or 14th seed Tommy Paul in his maiden grand slam semi-final.
Whereas it is the top of the highway for Thompson, the 30-year-old will depart the Massive Apple with a half-a-million-dollar payday and a career-high rating of No.29 on the planet to be on track for a first-time grand slam seeding on the Australian Open in January.
The opposite males’s quarterfinals will see People Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe play the upper ranked Alexander Zverev and Grigor Dimitrov on Wednesday morning (AEST), whereas Medvedev will play the winner of Tuesday’s match between Sinner and Paul on Thursday.
Within the ladies’s draw, American Emma Navarro will play Spain’s Paula Badosa, and China’s Qinwhen Zheng will play Aryna Sabalenka on Wednesday morning. Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia will play Karolina Muchová on Thursday morning, whereas American Jessica Pegula will play world primary Iga Świątek.
AAP
