Australian tennis player Alex de Minaur defeated world-number three Daniil Medvedev to progress to the round of 16 in the 2022 Paris Masters.
The 23-year-old Australian upset the heavily favoured Medvedev in a thrilling match lasting 2 hours and 46 minutes, winning 6-4, 2-6, 7-5.
The win is the biggest of Alex de Minaur’s career and his first over the former world number one, having lost the previous four encounters against Medvedev.
It is also the first time de Minaur has beaten anyone ranked in the ATP top-five, having been unsuccessful in his previous 18 attempts – you know what they say, 19th time lucky!
de Minaur will play the American world number 21 Francis Tiafoe in the next round of the tournament (Tiafoe is ranked 16th at the Paris Masters). Tiafoe won against British player Jack Draper 6-3, 7-5 to progress to the round of 16.
A win from de Minaur will move him ahead of fellow Australian Nick Kyrgios in the rankings, making him Australia’s highest ranked tennis player.
A dramatic finish
After splitting the first two sets, the final set of the match went down to the wire.
It looked as if de Minaur would once again lose to the higher ranked player, with Medvedev taking a 2-0 lead in the final set.
But the Australian – nicknamed “speed demon” – rallied hard, with a competitive back-and-forth final set which saw him start to pull away physically from the Russian.
Medvedev was certainly playing the villain in the match, with the Parisian crowd jeering him from the first set.
The world number three eventually cracked, double faulting twice in the final game, which gave de Minaur the victory.
Medvedev smashed his racket following the end result but was quick to congratulate the Australian after the game.
Speaking in the post-match interview, de Minaur joked, “I just wanted to wit for the 19th game – why do I in the first 18, eh?”
“I knew it was going to be a tough battle, He’s an incredibly tough opponent. I knew what to expect and I’m glad I played a very tactical game out there.”
Everyone at DMARGE is rooting for the young Australian tennis star to make it all the way!
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