AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 16, 2025

Alex De Minaur

Press Conference

A. de MINAUR/T. Boyer

6-2, 6-4, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Alex, well done. Another strong performance on RLA. How do you rate your level today compared to the first round?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, look, another day playing on RLA. Happy to get the win. Happy to move on. Yeah, looking forward to the next round.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. If you would step back 12 months, have a good look at your game, where would you say your key areas of improvement have been to see you take the next step towards the top 10?

ALEX de MINAUR: Well, I think probably the biggest aspect has always been serve, right? Get more free points on serve, that's been a goal for a very long time. Yeah, higher ball speed off the ground ultimately.

I've always been able to be aggressive and have that mindset. But keep reminding myself that's the way I want to play. Kind of ultimately that's come with work off the court, getting a little bit bigger and stronger. That's definitely helped in those areas.

Q. Down Love-2 in the first set, can you describe the problem-solving process to get yourself back into it and win the next eight games?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, look, I think the way that match started, I felt like I started it quite well, had a break point on his first service game. Then more than anything, I thought he played some pretty special stuff to start off that match.

More than anything, for me it's, All right, let's go back to the well, let's keep digging. If he can keep on doing that for three, four hours, then you shake his hand.

More often than not it's probably going to go on my side and I'm going to have opportunities to kind of come back. I just told myself to stay with it and stay solid.

Q. The preparation of Thanasi has come under fire. You played some exhibition matches, which you won, in December in London. Can I ask how that personally served you as preparation for this, and whether you think that criticism of the December sort of tournament is fair?

ALEX de MINAUR: Well, look, ultimately everyone decides their own schedule. Whether you're playing an XO or not, you can decide to put training around it. I don't know thinking playing tournaments or playing an XO, a three-day event, is going to cause any sort of harm one way or the other.

Thanasi, he's a hell of a player. So much talent. He had a tough, tough loss last night where he played some incredible tennis for four hours. He's shown that he can do this in Grand Slams quite often. He's so dangerous whenever he steps out on the court.

I think more than anything, we all just want him to be out there healthy, competing to his highest possible level.

Q. Today's match, just looking at the stats on your serve, maybe first-serve percent down, but speed is up. How would you rate your service today? What is it about your serve that's improved?

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, serving performance, I think today it felt like the first two sets was pretty good. Very high percentage of first serves and first-serve points won.

I varied from going for the big ones down the T with some variety, with the sliders, and just felt like I was hitting my spots quite well. I think in the third set I lost a little bit of rhythm, a little bit of energy, intensity. It affected my serving numbers a little bit.

But ultimately it's getting more free points, right? It's hitting your spot or setting up the next shot. Too often in the past I didn't have enough power where I was really playing that next shot on my terms. Way too often I was going for 180 body serve to try and get something short, but I wasn't really hitting 210s down the T or aces here and there to give me free points.

I think ultimately that was the biggest improvement of just adding 10, 15Ks on serve, and also trying to not jeopardize the accuracy, still hitting those spots. If I can do that, I'm going to hit those aces, have a high percentage of points won on first serve. It's definitely going to make my life easier trying to hold serve.

Q. We've asked you a lot about how you handle the pressure on court, the expectation of being No. 1. Where do you have to improve and change with that transition from a player in the 30s to being in the top 10 and all the responsibility that comes with that: media, balancing sponsorship, activities off the court? Where did you think you had to get better?

ALEX de MINAUR: That's a good question.

I think probably the biggest thing is you got to realize that your days are going to be long, right? There's no hiding behind the facts. Whether you're spending four, five, six hours just purely working on yourself, whether it's on court or off court, whether it's rehab, recovery, whatever it may be, in the gym. Often there's long hours off the court, as well, with media commitments and things of the sort.

It's really about planning. It's about having a healthy balance. I've got a great team around me that helps me in every kind of step of the way.

As you win more matches, there's going to be more media attention. But for me, nothing can change of who I am as a person and what I need to do on the court, right?

The priorities are always going to be what I do on the court. That's trying to improve and be a better version of myself than I was the day before. That's my number one priority. We'll find a way to fit the media side of things around that (smiling).

Q. Have you got better at answering questions, do you think?

ALEX de MINAUR: You get used to answering the same questions (smiling). Every morning before I walk to the courts, I rehearse my answers in front of the mirror, my generic answers (laughter).

But look, like everything, with practice it becomes more natural. You get used to certain things. I'm lucky. You guys are nice to me. You don't ask me too many tough questions. So I do appreciate that (smiling).

Q. In the debate of youth versus experience and doing well at this Grand Slam, would you say it helps to be a more experienced player or...

ALEX de MINAUR: Look, there's two ways to look at it, right? You have the experienced player who has been there, knows what to do in sort of moments, probably key moments. Then you've got I guess the new player because he's full of energy, no fear, right? You have both sides of the coin.

For me now, I've been in this position. I know what I need to do. I know that the early rounds, it's all about getting through, no matter how. Whether it's pretty, whether it's not. Whether you're playing amazing tennis or can't find the court.

Ultimately the only thing that counts is getting over the line and winning that last point. If you can do your best to conserve energy and not play long matches, then that's going to be very nice to you and your body as the tournament goes along.

That's been my main focus. Get in, do what I need to do, get out if I can.

THE MODERATOR: Last two with the young reporters.

Q. Do you have any friends on the tennis court?

ALEX de MINAUR: I do. I do have some friends. I think most of my friends are normally the other Australians that we share a lot of time on court with, whether it's Jordan Thompson, Rinky, Thanasi Kokkinakis. I would say all of the Australians.

It's mainly because, as we spend so much of the year away from home, we're always kind of hanging out with each other, going to dinners with each other. It's a great way to kind of keep that camaraderie going.

Q. What was the most funniest thing that has happened on a tennis court to you?

ALEX de MINAUR: The funniest thing? Let's see. I'll give you the most embarrassing one that you can probably search up later.

I spent a whole change of ends trying to peel a banana, and I couldn't peel a banana. I thought no one had noticed, right? I thought, Okay, I'll be safe. Then as soon as I finished the match, it was all over social media, Eurosport, this and that.

It's safe to say a lot of people saw me not being able to peel a banana. From then, I've learned.

Q. Did you like the coin toss as much?

ALEX de MINAUR: Well, I didn't win it. It could have gone an extra flip and it would have been on my side. It was a very solid coin toss. I'll give you kudos for that.

Q. How do you think your performance was against Tristan in the match?

ALEX de MINAUR: Well, I was quite happy with my performance. I think it's never easy playing someone you've never faced before. There's always that uncertainty of not being sure what to expect.

Yeah, I'm happy I was able to win in straight sets. There was some moments there where he played some very good tennis. I didn't get too rattled and I focused on what I needed to do.

Yeah, I'm happy to be in the next round.

Q. Your thoughts on Cerundolo. Top-20 player in the past. Gone ro the fourth round a couple times at the French. Tricky player.

ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, he's a very dangerous player, very tricky. He's got a lot firepower from the baseline with that forehand. He's had some big scalps on tour. He's not afraid to play some big matches.

It's going to be a battle. I'm looking forward to it. It's going to be a really tough one. I've got to be up for it from the very first point, bring that intensity, play some aggressive style of tennis, bring out a better version of myself, which I think I'm doing every day.