Australia's team captain Lleyton Hewitt expressed optimism after witnessing Alex de Minaur's victory over Novak Djokovic at the 2024 United Cup. Hewitt believes De Minaur's win is a good sign ahead of a potential match against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semifinals.
De Minaur defeated Djokovic 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 34 minutes to propel Australia to a 1-0 lead in their quarter-final clash against Serbia at the United Cup. The result put an end to Djokovic's winning streak of 43 matches in Australia; it was his first loss in the country since his fourth-round exit at the hands of Hyeon Chung during the 2018 Australian Open.
During the post-match press conference, Hewitt was questioned about the likelihood of De Minaur winning a potential semifinal clash against Stefanos Tsitsipas, whom the Australian has failed to defeat in all their 10 previous encounters.
In response, Hewitt stated that De Minaur had never beaten Novak Djokovic in the past either, but was able to overcome that hurdle in the quarterfinals. The 42-year-old went on to suggest that De Minaur would be able to channel his recent win and defeat Tsitsipas in a potential semifinal clash.
"He'd never beaten Novak before tonight either. So we're looking forward to changing that one. We'll change that one, too (smiling)," Hewitt said.
The last match between Alex de Minaur and Stefanos Tsitsipas took place at the 2023 Los Cabos Open final, where the Greek defeated the 24-year-old in straight sets to secure the title.
Alex de Minaur: "I’m here to prove a lot of people wrong"
At the press conference after defeating Novak Djokovic, Alex de Minaur said he is determined to silence his doubters and prove them wrong. He also expressed that he wants to improve his game and get better.
“I’m here to prove a lot of people wrong and to try and get better. Ultimately I won’t be the biggest or the strongest. I will show I have variety in my game and I’m glad I could bring this level today,” De Minaur said.
De Minaur also expressed his excitement to go to Sydney for the semifinals and play at the Ken Rosewall Arena as it is one of his most cherished venues.
“I'm excited to go to Sydney. I'm hoping we're going to be able to fill up Ken Rosewall Arena. Hope it's an amazing atmosphere, [I] love playing there, had some great memories there, played some great tennis there. Hopefully this whole team can keep it going,” he added.
Australia will either face Greece or Germany at the United Cup semi-finals in Sydney on Saturday, January 6.
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