Determined Alex de Minaur battles to book his place in the fourth round of the Australian Open with gutsy comeback vs Francisco Cerundolo

Australia’s hopes of a local talent winning the Australian Open men’s singles for the first time in 49 years were kept alive on Saturday afternoon by a very resilient performance from Alex de Minaur.

It was not all plain sailing for the Sydneysider, who sealed a 7-5 6-7 (7-3) 3-6 3-6 comeback victory against world No 31 Francisco Cerundolo in blistering heat at the Rod Laver Arena on Saturday. 

It was, perhaps, his toughest test so far this week after he had claimed straight-set victories over Botic van de Zandschulp and Tristan Boyer, with De Minaur being forced to fight back after going a set down.

‘Before I walk on the court, every time I make a pact with myself, a promise to myself that I’m going to compete till the very last point no matter what,’ the Australian said. 

‘Look, if I went two sets down, it wasn’t going to change my attitude or my fight or my belief,’ he added when pressed on how his mindset would change if he had lost the second set tie breaker. 

‘I was still going to compete to the end. It definitely made my life a whole lot easier to turn that match around, being one set all instead of two sets to love down in a tough, physical battle.’ 

De Minaur has been praised this week for showing how cool and composed he can be on the court, even amid the large expectations riding on the World No 8. Today he cut a much more animated figure than what we’ve seen over the past week. In front of his new fiancee Katie Boulter, he roared as Cerundolo double-faulted to concede a match point and fist bumped towards the corner of the crowd in which his beau and coaching staff were sitting.

It was an outstanding comeback from the Australian, who, reflecting on the match added that he felt the pressure building. 

‘I feel I learned a lot,’ he said. ‘Looking back at this [match] I reckon this is probably the first match that I’ve played here in Oz where I’ve felt that I didn’t feel comfortable. 

‘I felt, all of a sudden, a little bit of pressure playing. I didn’t know what to do.’ 

He added: ‘I’d rather win ugly any day over losing pretty, right? 

‘Ultimately, I lived to fight another day. My next one I’ll make sure I bring a better level.’

De Minaur will now progress to the fourth round of the tournament and face off against American star Alex Michelsen but he will want to improve on his first set performance today after he made 28 unforced errors. For context, he made 15 in the whole of his second-round clash against Tristan Boyer earlier this week.

Frustrations even boiled over at one point in the set where he appeared to hit a ball long beyond Cerundolo’s baseline. The Argentinian still returned the ball after it had gone out with De Minaur attempting to kick the ball into the air, but missed the ball.

He was also seen roaring at his coach’s box, looking for answers after going down in the opening set. 

This contest was a real tussle of wills, something that the Aussie had been expecting coming into the matchup.

‘It’s going to be a battle,’ he said during his press conference earlier in the week.

‘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 tennis, bring out a better version of myself, which I think I’m doing every day.’

But it did take De Minaur some time to warm up, even with the home fans chanting his name at every chance.

Cerundolo picked his shots very well. While De Minaur is regularly hailed as the ‘fastest man in tennis’ the Aussie struggled to meet the speed of Cerundolo’s sweeping forehand, which moved him from tramline to tramline throughout the match. He also troubled De Minaur with some stunning drop shots over the net and saved two match points in the fourth set by bringing the Australian forward from the baseline.

In the second set, the Australian responded and was lifted by the home fans inside the Rod Laver Arena. He came out of the blocks flying and took an early break against Cerundolo, who despite saving two break points, was engulfed by the speed and power of the Aussie star.

But he was not giving up just there, with De Minaur conceding several errors in the resulting game to hand his opponent a break point of his own before he would concede the game.

A tie break followed and while the two tussled, de Minaur would turn on the gas to steam to a 7-3 lead.

In the third set, De Minaur looked like he had found his mojo. He was clinical in rising to an early break in the fourth game, beating Cerundolo on his own serve having gone 15:40 up in the game but the Argentine, who is ranked 31 on the ATP Tour, hit back with a backhand that ripped through the air to claim a break of his own.

But with De Minaur 3-4 ahead, his opponent began to make some unusual errors, pumping the ball into the net and hitting beyond the baseline. De Minaur hit just one winner in the entire exchange opting to keep the ball in play instead of thumping drives to each corner of the court.

And the tactic worked, with Cerundolo conceding a break point himself before De Minaur, to rapturous applause from fans inside the Rod Laver Arena, claimed a 2-1 lead in the match.

While Cerundolo’s booming forehand wasn’t the only ploy in his locker. The Argentinian showcased his deft touch to catch De Minaur out with multiple cutely timed drop shots over the net.

But the Aussie quickly caught on. At 3-3 in the fourth set, Cerundolo chipped the ball over the net on his own serve catching the home favourite out once. He tried again in the subsequent point but De Minaur this time managed to reach the shot. He’d return the ball, with Cerundolo sending him rushing back towards his baseline but again De Minaur recovered. His efforts were not in vain either, with Cerundolo misplacing his shot before sending the ball out of play.

It was the key moment in the final set, with De Minaur sealing a crucial break to go 3-4 up.

The Aussie subsequently held service, with Cerundolo going short again, but De Minuar, this time, cut his response short across the net, winning the point and the game.

He was again made to work for the victory at the end of the match, with Cerundolo saving three match points before he double-faulted to concede the defeat.