Weight's been lifted: Demon's family bring smile back

Perth Now

2 days ago

Utterly unrecognisable from the tortured figure of the French Open press room, Alex de Minaur was all smiles back at Wimbledon after his first win for five long weeks, declaring he felt like a weight had been lifted from him.
And his businesslike opening-round victory over Spanish grinder Roberto Carballes Baena in the late-morning sunshine felt extra-special for the Australian No.1, as he enjoyed the rare treat of having his family at courtside cheering him on.
De Minaur's 6-2 6-2 7-6 (7-2) win was his first since he defeated Serbian Laslo Djere in the opening round at Roland Garros at the end of May.
A couple of days later, the shock capitulation to Alexander Bublik from two sets up followed, leaving him offering up the unexpected public declaration of how mentally burnt out he felt.
After a break, he returned, only to lose his first match at Queen's Club, and had since played only one exhibition affair last week as his main Wimbledon warm-up match.
But he swore the sabbatical had done him good. "It felt like there was not as much pressure on myself. I just went out there, and my focus was on doing a job," he said.
"I knew that going in, I was in a really good head space, and I was hitting the ball really well, so it kind of gave me a sense of calmness.
"I didn't feel like I was playing with a lot of weight. So it was great, because this match had a bit of everything. It had some really good tennis from my side in the first two sets, then he lifted the level and I was in some tough moments, which I was able to play through.
"Then at the end I ended up raising my level when I most needed it and played a very clutch kind of tiebreak, going after the ball."
Asked whether this signalled a potential return to top form, de Minaur, who reached the quarter-finals against Novak Djokovic last year only to suffer a season-compromising hip injury while winning his fourth-round match against Arthur Fils, said: "Whether I'm back to my best, I can only show that by playing the tennis.
"At least I know that I'm in a good spot to perform. I'm going to give myself the best chance to perform."
The 11th seed was also buoyed by having his Spanish mother Esther, and his younger siblings Daniel, Cristina and Sara at courtside, as well as fiancee Katie Boulter making a brief appearance.
"My mum has definitely started travelling a little bit more frequently, and she tries to make most of the slams," said de Minaur.
"My siblings, it's a little bit more of a rarer occasion that they come out. Obviously this is probably the first time this year they're all together. So the whole family is out here, which is pretty cool and pretty special. This definitely feels like a second 'home' slam for me."
He's not looking too far ahead, with a potential fourth-round meeting with Djokovic in the offing, as he has a handful with his next opponent, Arthur Cazaux, a French qualifier who knocked out one de Minaur's contemporaries from junior days, Adam Walton.
"Arthur's obviously very talented. He's had some big scalps before, and coming through quallies, he's playing with a lot of confidence. It's going to be another battle," said de Minaur.