Alex de Minaur: A Rising Star in the Tennis World

Promising Predictions from Mats Wilander

Former world No.1 Mats Wilander predicts that Alex de Minaur will become a Grand Slam champion. If it doesn’t happen in Paris this week, Australia could be celebrating a new king at its own major in Melbourne. Wilander’s prediction follows de Minaur’s impressive breakthrough to the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, where he’ll be an underdog against Olympic champion Alexander Zverev on Wednesday.

Continuous Improvement and Unyielding Determination

“It’s no surprise to me he’s in the quarters,” Wilander told reporters at Roland Garros, noting that he sees shades of de Minaur’s idol, Lleyton Hewitt, in the 25-year-old’s ability to squeeze every bit of improvement out of himself. “Alex is unbelievable; his legs are stronger every time I see him. He’s a player who improves by the smallest margins, but he’s always improving.”

Wilander dismissed the notion that de Minaur lacks the necessary weapons to win. “It’s said he doesn’t have the weapons, but nor did Lleyton Hewitt, and nor did I, honestly. If you don’t have the weapons, you’ve got to have this, this, and these,” he added, pointing to his heart, head, and cojones.

Tactical Adaptability

Wilander praised de Minaur’s tactical flexibility, saying, “When you have those, you’re willing to change your tactics depending on who you’re playing, rather than today’s model which is ‘I’m going to play my own game and not worry about the other person’. If you’re humble enough to know and understand that you can’t out-hit the big hitters, then you’ve got to do something different. Alex is learning this, it looks like to me.”

Wilander compared de Minaur’s relentless effort to that of Spanish clay-court grinder David Ferrer, stating, “He’s unbelievable. Talk about David Ferrer getting the most out of his game, well you have to say Alex is getting the most out of his.”

Potential for Further Growth

Despite his current success, Wilander believes de Minaur still has room to grow. “I still think there’s more to come because he’s so fast – and if he learns to be fast at the right time on the right ball, there’s even more improvement. Lleyton did that at times too.”

Future Grand Slam Champion

Wilander expressed his confidence in de Minaur’s future success at Grand Slam tournaments. “There’s not really a limit for Alex in a way, because for him, knowledge of his opponent and knowledge of his own limitations will make him a better tactician, just like it was for Lleyton.”

When asked if de Minaur could win a slam, Wilander responded, “Yeah, for sure. The Australian Open probably because it’s the fastest hard court. He has to improve his serve, needs to add a little power to his serve. If he does, the courts there suit him already and having the crowd behind him is massively important because it’ll make the opponent feel some of that.”

Currently assured of returning to an equal career-high No.9 in the world, de Minaur will climb to at least eighth in the rankings with a victory over Zverev and could finish the French Open as high as No.6 if he wins the tournament.

Source: https://au.sports.yahoo.com/wilander-ever-improving-demon-win-220000769.html