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London: Alex de Minaur knows he’ll never be a box office star in the style of, for example, his compatriot Nick Kyrgios. And he’s more than happy to identify as “quite boring”.
The Australian men’s No.1, seeded 15 for this fortnight’s Wimbledon Championships, has become the spiritual head of his nation’s contingent whether he likes it or not. Still, the modest 24-year-old says he would never dare to call himself the leader of the Aussie pack.
Alex De Minaur prepares for Wimbledon.Credit: Getty Images
This is despite the fact he’s opened the doors of his home in Alicante, a port city on Spain’s southeastern Costa Blanca, for his compatriots on the circuit to use as a temporary base. Many took up the offer when they were effectively stranded in Europe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I don’t want to call myself a leader,” he says. “I kind of like to go about my business quite quietly and almost, if anything, lead by example. But it just shows that they value what I’ve been able to accomplish.
“It feels great that all my fellow teammates, they can – I don’t know if ‘look up to’ is the right word – but respect me and be able to ask for maybe advice or tips.”
One of eight Australian men in the main draw – de Minaur and most of his compatriots were due to enjoy a get-together on Saturday night, with Australia’s Davis Cup captain and former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt, who was keen to share his experiences of success at the All England Club.
He’s more than happy to talk up their efforts, too, with Max Purcell “having a career-best year”, Jordan Thompson “very dangerous” on grass, and Christopher O’Connell “just getting better”. Alexei Popyrin, De Minaur said, has “got a big game”.
“I think it’s amazing the level all of the Aussies are showing and such a strong group of guys we’ve got in the top 100 and just looming up just outside, and we’re really showing how strong of a nation we are.″
Having become the first Australian to make the final of Queen’s, the traditional lead-up tournament in London, since Hewitt 17 years ago, de Minaur is hoping for big things over the coming days, driven by the memories of a disappointing fourth-round exit from last year.
He showed dash and dare in his straight sets loss to new world No.1 Carlos Alcaraz, and is hoping to “do some damage” off the back of his run of good form on grass, having won 21 of his past 30 matches on the surface since the pandemic.
Alex de Minaur returns to Carlos Alcaraz at Queen’s.Credit: Getty Images
He ousted dual Wimbledon champion Andy Murray and sixth seeded Dane Holger Rune at Queen’s, and meets Belgium’s Kimmer Coppejans, ranked 187 in the world, in the opening round on Tuesday.
“I felt like I played some very positive tennis throughout the whole week,” he says. “I backed myself at all stages, I was in a very calm mindset. When I can have that mindset, it’s when I bring up my best tennis.”
Last year de Minaur lost in a deciding super tiebreaker to Chilean Cristian Garin. It denied him the chance to take on Kyrgios in an all-Australian clash that could have been fascinating given their contrasting styles and personalities.
Kyrgios earlier this year was forced to play down reports of a feud between the pair, saying he had a “special relationship with de Minaur after there was said to be tension over Kyrgios’s withdrawal from Australia’s United Cup team.
With injury doubts over Kyrgios, de Minaur shrugged when asked if his countryman would be fit enough to again challenge this year.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” he said. “Obviously, he hasn’t had the ideal preparation coming in, the body’s not holding up. I think we’re all hoping that he’s been able to take some time off to be able to perform here – but I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”
Kyrgios is due to address the media on Sunday morning (UK Time) where he’s expected to confirm whether he’ll be playing on No.1 Court against the Belgian wildcard David Goffin in what would be only his second match in nine months after knee surgery.
Watch all the action from Wimbledon with every match streaming ad-free, live & on demand from July 3 on the Home of Grand Slam Tennis, Stan Sport.
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