Spoiler:
De Minaur reaches fourth round for fourth consecutive year
January 18, 2025
Alex de Minaur in action on Saturday in Melbourne.
Getty Images
Alex de Minaur in action on Saturday in Melbourne.
By Sam Jacot
Alex de Minaur defeated a seeded opponent at the Australian Open for the first time in his career on Saturday when he battled past 31st seed Francisco Cerundolo 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-3 to reach the fourth round in Melbourne for the fourth consecutive year.
The Australian holds a 16-0 record against players ranked lower than him at the hard-court major but had never beaten a seed before he walked onto Rod Laver Arena under the mid-afternoon sun.
However, the 25-year-old changed that with a trademark war of attrition display against Cerundolo to advance after three hours and 52 minutes in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.
"You put in a lot of hard work in the offseason and this is where you see the results. I am extremely happy," De Minaur said. "I felt great out there. It is easy to feel so good on this court with this amazing crowd. Something you can always count on is if I don't play my best, I will compete until the end."
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After struggling to deal with the Argentine’s weight of shot in the first set, De Minaur recovered from squandering a break advantage in the second set to crucially level the match. Prior to the match, De Minaur held a 7-23 record in majors after dropping the first set. Determined to improve that record in front of his home crowd, the No. 8 player in the PIF ATP Rankings seized on a physical drop from Cerundolo to win the third set.
The eighth seed then produced a trademark moment in the fourth set to fully turn the tide in his favour. At 3-3, 15/0, Cerundolo planted an almost perfect drop shot over the net and De Minaur did well to scamper and flick the ball back with the edge of his racquet. Having closed the net, Cerundolo then popped a lob back over the Aussie’s head, but De Minaur refused to give up, charging back to push a forehand into the air. With a simple volley required to win the point, Cerundolo hit wide under the Aussie pressure.
De Minaur went on to break Cerundolo’s serve before closing out to become the 20th Australian man in the Open Era to reach the fourth round on four or more occasions.
Chasing his maiden quarter-final at his home major, De Minaur will next play American Alex Michelsen, who beat Karen Khachanov in straight sets. De Minaur and 20-year-old American Michelsen are locked at 1-1 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
If De Minaur can overcome Michelsen, he is seeded to meet defending champion Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals.
January 18, 2025
Alex de Minaur in action on Saturday in Melbourne.
Getty Images
Alex de Minaur in action on Saturday in Melbourne.
By Sam Jacot
Alex de Minaur defeated a seeded opponent at the Australian Open for the first time in his career on Saturday when he battled past 31st seed Francisco Cerundolo 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-3 to reach the fourth round in Melbourne for the fourth consecutive year.
The Australian holds a 16-0 record against players ranked lower than him at the hard-court major but had never beaten a seed before he walked onto Rod Laver Arena under the mid-afternoon sun.
However, the 25-year-old changed that with a trademark war of attrition display against Cerundolo to advance after three hours and 52 minutes in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.
"You put in a lot of hard work in the offseason and this is where you see the results. I am extremely happy," De Minaur said. "I felt great out there. It is easy to feel so good on this court with this amazing crowd. Something you can always count on is if I don't play my best, I will compete until the end."
The Official App Of Tennis | Download ATP WTA Live App
After struggling to deal with the Argentine’s weight of shot in the first set, De Minaur recovered from squandering a break advantage in the second set to crucially level the match. Prior to the match, De Minaur held a 7-23 record in majors after dropping the first set. Determined to improve that record in front of his home crowd, the No. 8 player in the PIF ATP Rankings seized on a physical drop from Cerundolo to win the third set.
The eighth seed then produced a trademark moment in the fourth set to fully turn the tide in his favour. At 3-3, 15/0, Cerundolo planted an almost perfect drop shot over the net and De Minaur did well to scamper and flick the ball back with the edge of his racquet. Having closed the net, Cerundolo then popped a lob back over the Aussie’s head, but De Minaur refused to give up, charging back to push a forehand into the air. With a simple volley required to win the point, Cerundolo hit wide under the Aussie pressure.
De Minaur went on to break Cerundolo’s serve before closing out to become the 20th Australian man in the Open Era to reach the fourth round on four or more occasions.
Chasing his maiden quarter-final at his home major, De Minaur will next play American Alex Michelsen, who beat Karen Khachanov in straight sets. De Minaur and 20-year-old American Michelsen are locked at 1-1 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
If De Minaur can overcome Michelsen, he is seeded to meet defending champion Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals.
d. Alex Michelsen 
6-0 7-6(5) 6-3