“I want to get the absolute most out of myself” – De Minaur into Top 10 after stellar week at United Cup

Team Australia might have fallen in the United Cup semi-finals, but Alex de Minaur’s week could not have gone any better.

With three wins against players ranked in the Top 10 during the tournament, the 24-year-old will join them in the highest echelon of the rankings next week – the first Australian man to break the Top 10 since Lleyton Hewitt.

“It’s an extremely special moment, and to be able to do it in Sydney on Ken Rosewall Arena in front of friends, family, it’s a memory that I’ll cherish forever – beating another top-10 player, a quality player, and playing an extremely high-level match,” he said afterwards, having defeated Alexander Zverev 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.

“It was very special. There was a lot to play for, but I just love every second that I have here in Sydney.”

De Minaur: My dRive has put me in this position

Asked to reflect on his progress in recent years, de Minaur said: “Probably back then everything was a little bit easier. I wasn’t thinking as much. Obviously I’m a new kid on the block and I’m just playing on adrenaline – ‘Hey, I’ve got nothing to lose every time I step out on court.’

“You know, often I try to go back to those types of days where, you know, I just didn’t have a care in a world. I just went out there, had fun, used the crowd, got hyped up, fired up, and played my style of tennis. I think I’ve been able to bring that at the start of the year, and it’s been definitely very positive so far.”

And when asked for his views on some of the negative reaction he has had on social media during his career, he explained: “Everyone’s going to have their opinion. It’s the way it is. Some people feel entitled to voice their opinions, and they believe that their opinions have a lot of merit.

“But at the end of the day, what happens with me is I see all these things, I see all the reasons why I’m not going to be a good player, I’m not going to make it, I’m not going to improve, and I store it in the back of my head and I use it as my motivation. Ultimately it’s my drive that has put me in this position, and the fact that I want to get the absolute most out of myself.”

De Minaur: This week has helped my record against Top-10 opponents

And he certainly did that in Sydney, beating Germany’s Zverev – a player against whom he had a losing 6-1 record – to take the semi-final down to a deciding mixed doubles.

“This last week has helped my record significantly against top-10 opponents, right?” he said, referring to the win over Zverev as well as Serbia’s Novak Djokovic and the USA’s Taylor Fritz. “I’ve shown that I’ve been able to do it, back it up, and, you know, in two different cities.

“It’s a great feeling. I’m really happy with how 2024 is going, and hopefully I can keep it going.”

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