‘Complete shock’: How wild weather proved Demon wrong and turned Aussie into ‘clay specialist’
- by Admin
- June 4, 2024
Australian tennis star Alex de Minaur believes he’s “converted into a clay specialist” after beating Daniil Medvedev to progress into the quarterfinals at Roland Garros.
De Minaur produced some of the best tennis in his career to topple the former US Open champion, requiring just under three hours to defeat Medvedev 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, 6-3.
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The victory also means De Minaur is the first Australian male in 20 years to reach the last eight in Paris.
Prior to this year’s tournament, De Minaur had failed to progress beyond the second round in his previous seven attempts at the French Open.
However, a quarterfinal berth at the Monte-Carlo Masters, a tournament also held on clay, coupled with his stunning run at Roland Garros has the Aussie thinking this surface might be his best.
“I always thought for me to play well on the clay I needed hot, lively conditions, but this whole tournament has proven otherwise,” De Minaur said in his post-match press conference.
“It’s been a complete shock to the system to everything I ever believed in.
“And now, the toughest thing is dealing with my team because they’ve got bragging rights. They gave me a lot of slack for me complaining all these years of my level on the clay, but now it looks like it’s one of my best slam results.
“It looks like I’ve converted myself into a clay specialist.”
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De Minaur’s joy at beating Medvedev, which doubled as his first win over a top five-ranked player at a grand slam, was evident as he roared in delight with his arms raised up after the contest.
“Well, I screamed, ‘I love the clay. I love it here. I can’t get enough,’” De Minaur said.
“I’m pretty happy, (I’m) not going to lie. It was a great match today (and) I fought till the end.
“(I) managed to beat a quality opponent in a Grand Slam fourth round, which is one of the goals that I had been setting for myself to go deeper at these events. I’m very proud of myself.”
The Aussie was also full of praise for the young fan who motivated him during the comeback victory over big-hitting German Jan-Lennard Struff two days earlier.
“He’s managed a miracle (for me so I) might have to get him on tour week in, week out,” De Minaur said.
“We found him obviously through the beautiful world of social media, we ended up finding him. We got him to the match. He came with his whole crew, with his mates and his coach.
“It was great to see him out there. Again, even on that big court, I could hear him after every single point. It’s a distinctive voice, so it’s great to see. He’ll be around.
“I think he’ll be … chilling with me tomorrow in my practice day, and of course he’ll be there for the very next match.”
De Minaur will play Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals.
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