Alex de Minaur won his match against Zak Svaida at Wimbledon 6-2, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 in 2 hours 41 minutes.
American player Svaida earned his reputation as the “Aussie Killer” at the French Open earlier this year, where he knocked out Alexei Popyrin and Adam Walton.
But world number six de Minaur held on in the third round of Wimbledon. clash on Saturday local time, emerge victorious in a battle between two fast players.
Cheers from the crowd could be heard throughout the match, with De Minaur enthusiastically chanting “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie”.
De Minaur enters Wimbledon
“It’s almost like an Australian court. It was amazing to play on that court.”
Speaking about his opponent, de Minaur called the 23-year-old a “terrible player”.
“He’s quite awkward, plays great tennis on both sides, has one of the best forehands I’ve ever seen.
“I played very well to hang in there.”
With this victory, de Minaur will officially advance to the second week (1/8 finals) of Wimbledon for the third year in a row.
On Monday he will face either Italy’s French Open finalist Flavio Cobolli or Russia’s two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist Karen Khachanov.
Under control, in command
De Minaur controlled the first set against his young opponent, finishing the set in a one-sided fashion in half an hour.
At the start of the second set, it looked like de Minaur was in complete control again, but Svayda managed to hit back.
Svaida managed to make it 5-4 on de Minaur’s serve, a key moment in the contest as he rushed towards goal to take control.
Unfortunately for the American player, de Minaur soon broke free again and leveled the situation.
American Zak Svaida lost to Australian Alex de Minaur, despite his reputation as the “Aussie Killer”. (Brian Inganga/AP)
De Minaur broke four times in the third set and broke twice in the third set as Svajda began to feel the pace. A medical timeout was called as Svaida required treatment on her left hip.
De Minaur remained in control until the end of the match, securing his place on Monday.
AARP