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London: Alex de Minaur avoided potential trouble to book his place in the last 16 of Wimbledon for the fourth time, on a day when defending champion Iga Swiatek lost and Serena Williams withdrew from the doubles.
Australia’s world number six, bidding to reach beyond the quarter-finals at a Grand Slam for the first time and living up to his youthful efforts a decade ago when he reached the final, held off American Zack Svaida by a set and a break before finding himself in what the Brits would say was stranded.
Alex de Minaur takes to the air and hits a volley during his four-set win over Zak Svaida.PA Images via Getty Images
Physically, Svajda is in the same lightweight division as De Minaur, but has shown seemingly effortless power at times – and has started playing from the first ball whenever he has a shorter ball or has enough time to get the ball in.
He scored 17 of his 39 winners in a brilliant second set that briefly looked in danger of defeat, but fifth seed De Minaur managed to regain the momentum to secure a 6-2, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 victory. De Minaur’s challenge, as is often the case, was whether he could absorb the best qualities of his opponent.
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“I think the way he stepped up the ball made me probably take a step back and give him a little more time on the ball. He had a little more swing and I think his level has definitely improved,” de Minaur said.
“To be honest, I spoke to the team before the match and we knew Zach was capable of something like this.
“The thought was to compete, stay with him and maintain that level throughout the match and hope that at some point it drops.”
This is exactly what happened. Despite all of Svajda’s rocket fireworks, he simply couldn’t keep the ball in play long enough to outlast de Minaur, one of the sport’s toughest fighters.
Making 50 unforced errors is rarely part of the recipe for victory over de Minaur, who did well to make the second set as competitive as it was during Svajda’s erratic purple patch.
At one of the American’s checkpoints, de Minaur slid so far for a forehand that he did the splits and fell onto the slippery grass behind the baseline. Many others would have given up, but he sprang to his feet, hit a deep backhand to push Svaida away and eventually made a mistake.
De Minaur caught every ball and advanced to the fourth round.Getty Images
It was classic Demon behavior and only a short stay in the set, but it reminded Svaida of the kind of tennis he would need to show to finish the job. At least in this case he had no time for it.
“I need to remind myself more often that best of two is a completely different matter,” De Minaur said.
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“Usually you get a little upset if your opponent plays a good set, but I have to think about the fact that they need to do it in three sets. It’s not the easiest task. On the other hand, there is someone who will make him win every point.
“We’re going to have some heat as we get towards the end of this tournament, so I’m looking forward to it.”
De Minaur’s fourth-round opponent is No. 9 seed Roland Garros finalist and sometime training partner Flavio Cobolli, who made a difficult start and beat Karen Khachanov 0-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 6-2 in four hours.
Reaching the second week of a Grand Slam is child’s play for de Minaur these days – he has reached the fourth round at 10 of his last 12 Grand Slams – but his self-proclaimed goal is to take it to the next level.
It means finally he broke the quarter-final barrier after getting that far seven times without advancing, including at Wimbledon two years ago when a hip injury kept him out of court against Novak Djokovic.
Swiatek was in a similar position a year ago, never progressing beyond the last eight at the All England Club before a brilliant run culminated when fellow American Amanda Anisimova double-boiled in a one-sided final.
But the former world number one’s title defense was over as she was defeated 7-6 (11-9), 6-2 by fast-rising Filipino Alexandra Ila, whose already huge fan base will only grow following her career-best triumph and touching on-court interview.
“I’m very emotional,” Ila said.
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“Maybe for someone like Iga, who has won so many Grand Slams, or maybe for someone like Serena or Venus (Williams), this achievement may seem small. But for someone who grew up in the Philippines (this is a huge achievement).
“Every day after school I went to practice with my brother and grandpa in my torn socks, glowing shoes and chubby cheeks, so that’s it for her.”
Swiatek wasn’t the only seed eliminated from the tournament, with Belgium’s Elise Mertens beating 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina 7-6 (7-4), 6-1. Anisimova also exited the tournament, losing to All-American Madison Keys 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.
Seeds Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz, Jasmine Paolini, Marta Kostyuk, Linda Noskova, Maria Bouzkova and Jiri Lehecka were victorious, as well as British wildcard Arthur Fehry, who made multiple comebacks to battle a nosebleed again during his five-set triumph over Zizou Bergs.
Eala is a national hero and trailblazer in the Philippines, as demonstrated at this year’s Australian Open, where even her training attracted an army of fans. No one from her country had won a match at a Grand Slam before she did so at last year’s US Open.
Eala bounced back from a set down in the previous round to eliminate Australia’s Maya Joint, who had beaten Serena Williams in a thrilling three-setter on Center Court in the first round.
This defeat to the Joint had further consequences for Wimbledon and Williams, who suffered a right knee injury in the match. After days of speculation, the 23-time major champion withdrew from the doubles event with her sister Venus.
“I’m heartbroken that I had to give up doubles. Getting back into competition again was a gift and being able to play alongside Venus once again meant the world to me,” Williams wrote on Instagram.
“I did everything I could to be ready, but unfortunately my knee is just not ready to compete.
“I’m especially grateful to tournament director Jamie Baker and the entire tournament team for giving me every opportunity to play here. Thank you to the fans for your incredible support and for making this return so meaningful. All I can say is stay tuned to a city near you for updates.”
Mark McGowan traveled to London with the support of Tennis Australia.
Watch Wimbledon from 7.30pm (AEST) every evening on Nine Network and Stan Sport.
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