De Minaur Wins On Sydney Return
De Minaur Wins On Sydney Return
World No. 29 to meet Opelka in second round
In 2018, Alex de Minaur reached his first ATP Tour final at the Sydney International ranked No. 167 in the ATP Rankings.
One year on, the World No. 29 made a winning return to Ken Rosewall Arena, beating Dusan Lajovic 6-4, 6-3 in 81 minutes. The 2018 ATP Newcomer of the Year won 79 per cent of first-serve points (30/38) and recovered from a 0-2 deficit in the second set to book his place in the last 16.
Sydney-born De Minaur looks set for another stellar season on the ATP Tour after earning his third victory in four tour-level matches this season, following a run to the Brisbane International quarter-finals last week (l. to Tsonga). The 19-year-old Australian ended his 2018 season with a runner-up finish at Next Gen ATP Finals (l. to Tsitsipas) on his debut at the 21-and-under event in Milan.
De Minaur will meet American Reilly Opelka for a place in the quarter-finals. Opelka overpowered Albert Ramos-Vinolas, landing 16 aces and dropping just eight points on serve (41/49) to earn a 6-3, 6-4 win after 63 minutes.
Sydney:
Sam Querrey also advanced to the second round. The 31-year-old was leading Malek Jaziri 6-1, 4-1 when the Tunisian was forced to retire.
Did You Know?
De Minaur achieved a career-high ATP Ranking on 18 occasions in 2018. The Australian began last year at No. 208 in the ATP Rankings and ended his 2018 campaign at No. 31.