'You got snails move faster' but Tommo's still battling
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The Age
25 minutes ago
- The Age
‘Excited' De Minaur locks in Wimbledon showdown with Djokovic
The anguished look on de Minaur's face after the Fils win, at a time when he should have been joyous, remains etched in onlookers' memory. 'It's funny how life works. Here we are a year later, and I'm going to get that match-up [but] a round earlier,' de Minaur said. 'But still, it was a brutal time for me last year, having to deal with all of those emotions. Here we are a year later; feeling good, ready to go, and I'm going to get my chance again, so I'm excited for that.' De Minaur soared to a career-best No.6 in the world despite not being able to play his Wimbledon quarter-final, but missed the next seven weeks – bar an Olympic doubles cameo with Alexei Popyrin – before reaching the US Open quarter-finals. He sat out for another six weeks trying to recover after that, and returned only to complete his goal of qualifying for the year-end tour finals, but was not the same player for the rest of the season. The Djokovic duel presents the chance for de Minaur, who is 12 years Djokovic's junior, to complete some unfinished business. 'I think there are definitely two versions of myself. Last year was a version of myself that was very confident and ready to kind of take on the world. I just got stopped in my tracks,' he said. 'I would say the version that I am right now is a lot wiser, and I've lived through a lot more experiences. I've played a lot more big matches. I think I'm more prepared mentally going into this next match. 'Whilst maybe my level last year was very high, and it was quite dangerous; I feel like this year, mentally, I'm in a really good place. I'm hoping that the game, the tennis, is going to come along.' Loading The Australian star dropped one set in the first three rounds and has largely impressed after admitting he was suffering from mental fatigue after his second-round exit at Roland-Garros to Alexander Bublik from two sets up. A first-up defeat to Jiri Lehecka at Queen's Club, where de Minaur has traditionally performed well, was also a shock result, but he has hit his stride with a friendly draw at SW19. Dominant victories over Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena and Frenchman Arthur Cazaux – after dropping the first set – advanced him to the third round, where he would have expected to take on Machac before Holmgren's heroics in his maiden grand slam draw. The average ranking of de Minaur's first three opponents was 127, so the Djokovic match-up will be a titanic step-up. But he will at least be comforted that Holmgren provided some resistance. De Minaur needed eight break points to finally assert his authority on the contest late in the first set after the Dane continually produced breathtaking hitting to dodge the trouble he found himself in on serve. There were several unreturned serves and others that drew short balls back that Holmgren flayed for winners off his forehand. He averaged 207km/h on his first serve and hit one at 226km/h, so de Minaur – the tour's top-rated returner – had his work cut out. De Minaur broke through when Holmgren crashed a forehand into the net to end an 18-point game, then served out the opening set with relative ease. The second set was headed the same way when de Minaur broke again in the ninth game, but Holmgren came roaring back to restrict him to 0-40 before breaking back on his fourth chance in the game. By then, the inspired Dane's confidence was soaring and his fearless hitting helped him force a tiebreaker, during which he threatened to level the match at a set-all. Everything could have been different if de Minaur's second serve at five-all in the tiebreak landed narrowly longer rather than collecting chalk as Holmgren misfired on return. The Australian apologised for his fortune, then watched as Holmgren double-faulted to gift him the set. Another Holmgren double-fault handed de Minaur a 4-2 edge in the third set, and he eventually booked his round-of-16 berth on his third match point with a third ace. Beaten Kasatkina off to Melbourne Kasatkina's straight-sets defeat to former Billie Jean King Cup teammate Samsonova will see her pack her bags for her new home city of Melbourne within the next few days. The 28-year-old, who gained permanent residency in Australia in March and was competing at her second major at Wimbledon for her adopted country, struggled to keep pace with the big-striking Samsonova, particularly on serve. Two loose service games sealed Kasatkina's first-set fate, and her day worsened when her shirt got caught on her earring and meant she could not contest her shot on the final point of the opening game of the second set. Samsonova broke for 2-0 then saved consecutive break-back points before rain intervened for the next two hours. Kasatkina snatched the first two points on resumption – the second after a wild Samsonova forehand – but every time she made an inroad, her Russian rival would reassert her authority. Loading 'I knew that it was going to be a very tough match because Liudmila is in great shape, winning a lot of matches, especially on grass,' Kasatkina said. 'Of course, I think I could do better on my side, but I also have to give her credit – she played a very, very good match.' Kasatkina will make a whirlwind trip to Melbourne to try and find a home, and continue her case to be an Australian citizen, which she needs to be before representing her new country in the BJK Cup. The world No.18 also needs ITF approval after already playing for, and winning the BJK Cup title with, Russia in 2021. She told this masthead before Wimbledon that there was an outside chance of her playing in Australia's BJK Cup tie in Hobart in November. 'In the next couple of days, I'm going to fly to Australia. I know that it's winter there, so it's the first time in my life I'm going to experience an Australian winter, not a summer,' she said. 'I'm going there for [only] a couple of days because the calendar is pretty tight. I need to become a citizen first [before playing BJK Cup for Australia], and after that, they can move forward. But before that, there is not much room for progress.'
Sydney Morning Herald
25 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Excited' De Minaur locks in Wimbledon showdown with Djokovic
The anguished look on de Minaur's face after the Fils win, at a time when he should have been joyous, remains etched in onlookers' memory. 'It's funny how life works. Here we are a year later, and I'm going to get that match-up [but] a round earlier,' de Minaur said. 'But still, it was a brutal time for me last year, having to deal with all of those emotions. Here we are a year later; feeling good, ready to go, and I'm going to get my chance again, so I'm excited for that.' De Minaur soared to a career-best No.6 in the world despite not being able to play his Wimbledon quarter-final, but missed the next seven weeks – bar an Olympic doubles cameo with Alexei Popyrin – before reaching the US Open quarter-finals. He sat out for another six weeks trying to recover after that, and returned only to complete his goal of qualifying for the year-end tour finals, but was not the same player for the rest of the season. The Djokovic duel presents the chance for de Minaur, who is 12 years Djokovic's junior, to complete some unfinished business. 'I think there are definitely two versions of myself. Last year was a version of myself that was very confident and ready to kind of take on the world. I just got stopped in my tracks,' he said. 'I would say the version that I am right now is a lot wiser, and I've lived through a lot more experiences. I've played a lot more big matches. I think I'm more prepared mentally going into this next match. 'Whilst maybe my level last year was very high, and it was quite dangerous; I feel like this year, mentally, I'm in a really good place. I'm hoping that the game, the tennis, is going to come along.' Loading The Australian star dropped one set in the first three rounds and has largely impressed after admitting he was suffering from mental fatigue after his second-round exit at Roland-Garros to Alexander Bublik from two sets up. A first-up defeat to Jiri Lehecka at Queen's Club, where de Minaur has traditionally performed well, was also a shock result, but he has hit his stride with a friendly draw at SW19. Dominant victories over Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena and Frenchman Arthur Cazaux – after dropping the first set – advanced him to the third round, where he would have expected to take on Machac before Holmgren's heroics in his maiden grand slam draw. The average ranking of de Minaur's first three opponents was 127, so the Djokovic match-up will be a titanic step-up. But he will at least be comforted that Holmgren provided some resistance. De Minaur needed eight break points to finally assert his authority on the contest late in the first set after the Dane continually produced breathtaking hitting to dodge the trouble he found himself in on serve. There were several unreturned serves and others that drew short balls back that Holmgren flayed for winners off his forehand. He averaged 207km/h on his first serve and hit one at 226km/h, so de Minaur – the tour's top-rated returner – had his work cut out. De Minaur broke through when Holmgren crashed a forehand into the net to end an 18-point game, then served out the opening set with relative ease. The second set was headed the same way when de Minaur broke again in the ninth game, but Holmgren came roaring back to restrict him to 0-40 before breaking back on his fourth chance in the game. By then, the inspired Dane's confidence was soaring and his fearless hitting helped him force a tiebreaker, during which he threatened to level the match at a set-all. Everything could have been different if de Minaur's second serve at five-all in the tiebreak landed narrowly longer rather than collecting chalk as Holmgren misfired on return. The Australian apologised for his fortune, then watched as Holmgren double-faulted to gift him the set. Another Holmgren double-fault handed de Minaur a 4-2 edge in the third set, and he eventually booked his round-of-16 berth on his third match point with a third ace. Beaten Kasatkina off to Melbourne Kasatkina's straight-sets defeat to former Billie Jean King Cup teammate Samsonova will see her pack her bags for her new home city of Melbourne within the next few days. The 28-year-old, who gained permanent residency in Australia in March and was competing at her second major at Wimbledon for her adopted country, struggled to keep pace with the big-striking Samsonova, particularly on serve. Two loose service games sealed Kasatkina's first-set fate, and her day worsened when her shirt got caught on her earring and meant she could not contest her shot on the final point of the opening game of the second set. Samsonova broke for 2-0 then saved consecutive break-back points before rain intervened for the next two hours. Kasatkina snatched the first two points on resumption – the second after a wild Samsonova forehand – but every time she made an inroad, her Russian rival would reassert her authority. Loading 'I knew that it was going to be a very tough match because Liudmila is in great shape, winning a lot of matches, especially on grass,' Kasatkina said. 'Of course, I think I could do better on my side, but I also have to give her credit – she played a very, very good match.' Kasatkina will make a whirlwind trip to Melbourne to try and find a home, and continue her case to be an Australian citizen, which she needs to be before representing her new country in the BJK Cup. The world No.18 also needs ITF approval after already playing for, and winning the BJK Cup title with, Russia in 2021. She told this masthead before Wimbledon that there was an outside chance of her playing in Australia's BJK Cup tie in Hobart in November. 'In the next couple of days, I'm going to fly to Australia. I know that it's winter there, so it's the first time in my life I'm going to experience an Australian winter, not a summer,' she said. 'I'm going there for [only] a couple of days because the calendar is pretty tight. I need to become a citizen first [before playing BJK Cup for Australia], and after that, they can move forward. But before that, there is not much room for progress.'
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Trusty Rusty backing Thommo's brave Wimbledon push
Pained Jordan Thompson must battle uneven odds one more time against in-form powerhouse Taylor Fritz as he seeks to break new ground at Wimbledon - and he's grateful to have Australia's ultimate tennis fighter in his corner. Back brace-clad 'Thommo' has been struggling with a debilitating sacroiliac joint problem, yet has somehow managed to squeeze into the fourth round for the first time in nine attempts. On Sunday, fifth seed Fritz awaits him, armed with a record of 73 aces at this edition so far and more grass-court match wins this year (11) than anyone. He's just won a tournament in Stuttgart and his fourth title at Eastbourne, looking a genuine title contender. So all the help he can get is welcomed by Thompson - particularly from his Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt, who's been a constant presence at courtside at Australian men's matches over the past week. 'Rusty' Hewitt was, of course, the last Wimbledon men's winner here back in 2002, and his famed fighting spirit has been replicated by the 31-year-old Thompson so far. After he had prevailed in his second-straight five-setter against Benjamin Bonzi, Thompson had thumped his hand against heart, roaring "that's some f***ing ticker!", while revealing how that phrase had come straight from the Hewitt lexicon. "I'm more grateful that Rusty's there because I know he's done everything in tennis, and I know how he's felt, and I know he knows how I'm feeling," said Thompson, who's coached by Marinko Matosevic. "Sometimes he's talking more than my coach, but I look to both of them. Obviously, I'm with Marinko every day, but Rusty's been in this position so many times, so he knows how it feels. "Marinko will be the first one to admit that, and he'll take a backward step. He's got no ego about coaching, so he just wants the best for me. So it works well. "Rusty'll put his thoughts forward, and I always appreciate that, but he doesn't step on anyone's toes, and certainly not Marinko's, because he knows Marinko's done a great job with me. "He just says what he needs to - and sometimes less is better - but if I ask him, he'll give me the full detail." They all have their work cut out plotting Fritz's downfall, even though the American has had tendinitis problems in his knee while, like Thompson, having to battle through two five-setters and a four-setter to set up the last-16 duel. The last time they played, at Queen's Club last year, Thompson won in straight-sets but the Sydneysider shrugs: "Yeah, I won last time on grass, but it was very different grass in different circumstances. So it'll be a new day." Fritz is certainly not taking the world No.44 lightly. "Thompson is going to be tricky," he said. "He's probably going to serve and volley me a lot, chip me a lot. He's good on grass. "It's a different kind of match to the ones I've been playing. It's going to be a lot of trying to kind of break my rhythm and take me out of my groove of just serving and ripping, so it's going to be different, for sure."
