By Ian Ransom
MELBOURNE, Jan 16 (Reuters) – Alex de Minaur knows there is no hiding at the Australian Open, especially as the home nation’s biggest hope of ending a 50-year drought for a men’s champion.
The sixth seed has grown accustomed to the attention that comes with playing in Melbourne, while finding the buzz a double-edged sword as he tries to balance expectations, obligations and his own competitive needs.
“There’s definitely a lot more off-court activities, off-court noise, stuff that you’ve got to deal with and handle that you probably don’t have at any of the other Slams,” De Minaur told reporters at Melbourne Park on Friday.
“At the same time, it comes with a lot of perks. Every time I walk out there, I’m playing in front of my home crowd. That’s what makes it special and what it’s all about.
“It is something that I’ve got to manage, manage my energy levels of giving kind of my time out to everyone else, but also reminding myself that I need to be selfish at times and think about myself and what’s going to help me come out and perform.
“Ultimately I’m here as a competitor to hopefully go deep at the Australian Open. That’s my priority.”
With injury-prone Nick Kyrgios in no condition to play singles at the tournament — and a doubt to ever contend at the Slams again — De Minaur is very much Australia’s main man.
Generations of home fans have waited in vain for a local winner of the men’s event since Mark Edmondson’s 1976 triumph.
Most this year will likely be content just to see De Minaur make the second week.
All will hope the 26-year-old can break his Grand Slam quarter-finals barrier, even if few would expect it.
Six-times Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz looms as the most likely quarter-final match-up for De Minaur, a player the Australian has lost to in all five of their tour-level clashes.
De Minaur warmed up for the tournament with a 6-3 6-4 defeat in an exhibition match against Alcaraz in front of a packed Rod Laver Arena on Thursday.
The 26-year-old is hardly alone in struggling against Alcaraz and the Spaniard’s arch-rival Jannik Sinner, the defending champion at Melbourne Park.
The pair won all the Grand Slams between them last year, leaving the rest competing for scraps.
De Minaur made his first Australian Open quarter-final last year only to be crushed in straight sets by Italian Sinner, who is favourite to win a third successive title at Melbourne Park.
Lightly-built, lacking a killer serve and unable to conjure much power in his groundstrokes, De Minaur is an anomaly in a game dominated by brutish baseliners.
That he has reached the heights of the top 10 is a wonder in itself, showing that grit, smarts and stamina can still go a long way.
He will rely heavily on those qualities to negotiate one of the tougher draws for the high seeds, starting with former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini in the first round.
“Ultimately every single player in the draw is extremely tough,” De Minaur said.
“It’s going to be a battle, but I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “It basically just means that I’m going to have to be firing from the word ‘go’.”
(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
