Alex de Minaur insists he’s ready for what’s next after shifting up a gear to set up an Australian Open fourth-round blockbuster with nine-times champion Novak Djokovic.
De Minaur dominated Benjamin Bonzi from the get-go and raced to a 7-6 (7-0) 6-2 6-1 victory after breaking the Frenchman’s resistance in a first-set tiebreaker on Saturday.
Dazzling the Rod Laver Arena crowd with his speed and energy, Australia’s 22nd seed broke Bonzi seven times in the two-hour, eight-minute mismatch to set the stage for an intriguing Monday night showdown with a clearly hindered Djokovic.
The Serbian superstar overcame some uncomfortable moments with his troublesome left hamstring to see off former world No.3 and 2017 semi-finalist Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 6-4 in the night’s feature match to confirm his date with de Minaur.
“Look, I’m not going to read into too much of that injury. Ultimately, he’s one of the best players in the world and I’m just going to have to take it to him and not shy away from the occasion,” de Minaur said.
After easing to a four-set second-round win over Adrian Mannarino, de Minaur looked a man on a mission against Bonzi.
He hammered 33 winners, fashioned a total of 22 break points and closed out his final service game to love with his seventh and eighth aces in a clinical display.
“I’m very happy, I can’t lie,” de Minaur said.
“Ultimately, if you want to go deep, and you want to really take it to the best players in the world, that’s the game plan.
“I mean, you’ve got to step it up. It’s no secret that against the best in the world you can’t just put the ball in the court and wait for them to miss because that’s just not going to happen.”
De Minaur and Djokovic have yet to clash.
But the home hope is brimming with belief after beating dethroned champion Rafael Nadal for the first time at the season-opening United Cup in Sydney, two months after also conquering 2021 and 2022 Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev.
The 23-year-old can’t wait to get a crack at Djokovic.
“These are the matches you want to be playing,” de Minaur said.
“You don’t want a walkover into the final of a slam. You want to be playing the best in the world.
“That’s what I’ve got. I’m going to probably have the best in the world in front of me – and I’m ready for the battle.
“I want to take it to them and show what I’m made of in the biggest of stages and just test myself out there and really take it to them.”
De Minaur or Djokovic will face either Russian fifth seed Andrey Rublev or Danish teen Holger Rune, the world No.10, in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.
