Alex de Minaur has a date with his own nemesis. The Australian defeated Frances Tiafoe in a spectacular three sets on Friday night, 6-3, 6-4, 7-5, to again reach the last 16 at his home grand slam.
There he will meet Alexander Bublik, the dangerous 10th seed who came back to beat the Australian twice in high-profile matches last year. They were two of a series of agonising, frontrunning defeats that tainted De Minaur’s 2025 season, including one at the ATP Finals against Lorenzo Musetti that prompted him to admit he had become “quite dark”.
Against Tiafoe though, there was no late turnaround, even if the American was unfortunate in a tight third set. De Minaur relied on his canny ability to stay in points others would give up on, and a penetrating backhand that made the American’s forehand ill. “It was a hell of a battle, so huge respect to him,” the Australian said. “I played some of my best tennis in the tournament for two and a half sets, and he just lifted it when he needed it.”
Despite 40 unforced errors – 12 more than the Australian – Tiafoe helped entertain the near-capacity Rod Laver Arena crowd. At one stage he fell to the court, having lost another see-sawing rally. Hand outstretched, he asked a ballgirl for assistance. With a struggle and a smile she helped him up, as the crowd roared delight.
De Minaur’s victory means he has reached the last 16 at Melbourne Park for five consecutive years. He is the second Australian man in the open era – after John Newcombe, who did eight in a row in the 1960s and 1970s – to achieve the feat. “I’m in a position where I want more, and I’m going to be pushing for that,” De Minaur said.
That would mean victory over a player who has become his nemesis. Bublik won 2-6, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 at Roland Garros in May, prompting De Minaur to say: “I have to adapt and make sure it doesn’t happen again.” It did, at the Paris Masters in October, when the Russian-born player – who switched allegiances to Kazakhstan as a 19-year-old, citing a lack of support in his homeland – won 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-5.
Bublik was still playing late on Friday night when De Minaur was speaking to the press, preventing the Australian from having to divulge his thoughts on the Kazakhstani maverick, one of the tour’s entertainers. This is a man who once said he hated the sport, and credits a spontaneous Las Vegas road trip for his breakthrough 2025. Finishing his match against Tomás Martín Etcheverry close to midnight, Bublik, however, was asked about De Minaur. “He’s a local hero, he’s a great player, we’ve shared a lot of matches together and I can’t wait to step on to the court with him,” he said.
The Kazakhstani’s cavalier attitude offers a counterpoint to De Minaur’s wholesome, Weet-Bix kid approach. Before those two defeats last year, De Minaur had beaten the 28-year-old – whose deft touch belies his near 2m (6ft 6in) frame – three times. Those came before Bublik’s recent rise up the rankings, however, which meant he graduated to the world’s top 10 for the first time this month.
“I matured a bit,” Bublik said, explaining his rise to the on-court announcer. “And I really like being home to be honest, and I realised quickly when I dropped in ranking if I play well and make a lot of points in few events, I can have more weeks off.” He grinned as he said it, with the same twinkle in the eye that led to him once hitting six underarm serves in a single game (no, not match).
The Australian does not have a 230km/h (142mph) serve, and he looks at the game in a different way. “I have been always one to let my tennis do the talking, and I have always found it quite tough to have that confidence if the results aren’t there,” he said.
“I know some players have the ability to not be affected by results, but for me, in terms of confidence, it was quite hard for me to really believe in myself unless I got those results. As the years have gone on, I have had those results.”
