'A normal human being's life': Demon's crucial reboot

Perth Now

8 hours ago

It was the week when he felt he had to leave the tennis racquets in his bag and live the life of a "normal human being" again.
And Alex de Minaur loved every minute.
Jaded, mentally and physically battered, Australia's top player has told AAP how he desperately needed the break he took after his shock early exit at the French Open and how it's felt like a key reboot with Wimbledon now in his refreshed sights.
De Minaur explained he had even taken the difficult decision of not defending his Rosmalen grass-court title in the Netherlands, when knowing it could affect his seeding at Wimbledon, because he was in such urgent need of a break.
In conversation at Queen's Club, where he returns to action for its prestigious Championship against Czech Jiri Lehecka on Tuesday more than a fortnight since he was the picture of misery after his Paris exit, a smiling de Minaur promised: "Obviously, I'm doing a lot better now.
"After Roland Garros, it was definitely a week of doing nothing, having nothing to do with tennis. That's very rare for me, very rare. I can't remember the last time I did that.
"It felt quite weird because I did try to help Katie (Boulter, his fiancee) as a hitting partner in practice and I just didn't enjoy it at all, and I was like 'I can't remember the last time I haven't enjoyed having a hit on the grass'.
"So that was a little bit of a false start, and then I decided to take three more days off and since then, I've been building and feeling better and better, and now I'm very excited to get started."
What did he do in his "week of doing nothing"?
Actually, quite a lot.
"Anything that's quite laid back, because tennis is a very stressful game, and there's a lot of intensity. So I enjoyed going out for coffees, to dinners, visiting parks and nature, playing golf," he shrugged.
"Anything I would define as being a normal human being and having a normal human being's life, instead of obsessing about tennis 24/7."
It made him realise just how much he'd needed the reset after the second-round capitulation to Alexander Bublik in Paris from two sets up, which left him complaining afterwards about feeling burnt out, mentally weary and vowing things had to change.
"In a way, the defeat helped me kind of get a little bit of perspective on why certain things were happening. I realised I was quite mentally drained out and fatigued," he said.
"So I've used these two weeks since to disconnect from the game a little bit and make sure I come back to competing with the same energy that I'm known for."
Being back on his "thoroughly enjoyable" grass swing, and able to have a base for a whole month with Boulter in London, has put him "in the right headspace" again.
And a change of tennis priorities is in order for him too.
"It was a difficult decision not to defend my title (in Rosmalen), but it wasn't only the mind, but the body that was a little battered up. My shoulder didn't feel amazing."
Losing the valuable ranking points has pushed him outside the top-10 where he's been a fixture, except for one week in March, for over eight months.
"It potentially had big implications for my seeding going into Wimbledon.
"But the way I looked at it - and what is healthy for me - is to stop obsessing about rankings and whether I go up or go down every week, and try to go back to a place where I'm just enjoying playing tennis and not thinking about all those outside factors, because it just gives added stress.
"I've got to start having a little bit more of a mentality of a big player and start backing myself to not have to play so many tournaments, and to hopefully do well in the big events.
"Mentally, I do feel I'm in the right spot, and even if it doesn't bring results this week, I'm confident that it will help me in the long run."