De Minaur put on an admirable display of sportsmanship at the Australian Open (Image: Getty)
Australian star has been praised for his honesty in his contest against Dutch ace Botic van de Zandschulp.
came out on top, 6-1, 7-5, 6-4, against the world no.22 in the first round match as he looks to win a maiden on home soil. However, it was a moment during the second set that earned him plaudits for his sportsmanship.
At 6-5 , the 25-year-old discovered a new ball in his set, which would’ve enabled him the opportunity to deliver a much quicker serve. Realising his advantage, De Minaur approached the umpire and his opponent to alert them to his potential upper hand.
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. Read our Privacy Policy
Despite being allowed to use the new ball, in a game that would see him serve for the set, the world no.8 elected opted not to utilise it, believing it wouldn’t be fair. Aussie doubles legend Todd Woodbridge then praised De Minaur for his stunning candour.
“Alex showing some incredible sportsmanship there,” Woodbridge said on Channel Nine. “He didn’t really have to tell Botic there was a brand new ball in there. If he takes that and serves, it’s going to come off faster.”
De Minaur’s notable sincerity was then again on show during the third set. With the score tied at 1-1, Van de Zandschulp served at deuce only for the Australian to lob the ball over him three shots into the rally.
The skillful Dutchman had to retreat quickly, but not before he produced a winning ‘tweener’ – the name for a shot when a player hits the ball between their legs. It’s a shot that is typically performed facing away from the opponent, forcing De Minaur to step back and applaud his challenger’s skill as he clapped using his racket.
De Minaur applauded the shot by his opponent (Image: Getty)
The shot caused quite a stir with Nine’s John Millman declaring it: “Shot of the year.” He added: “The crowd are up on their feet. What have I just seen? We see tweeners but that thing was an absolute rocket ship. would’ve been proud.”
Despite some noteworthy incidents, De Minaur was largely untroubled throughout the match. After the game he admitted that he feels in great shape as he guns for home turf glory.
“The body feels great, it’s been a long time since it felt this good and I’m more than anything just relieved,” he said to Nine. “I’m happy to move, slide around the court, burn my shoes, it’s a good feeling that one.”
While De Minaur is known as one of the rising stars of the game, he’s also known for being the fiance of British ace , and the world no.23 revealed that her beau actually skipped across courts after his win to watch her take on Rebecca Marino in her first round encounter.
De Minaur was watching Katie Boulter from the stands (Image: Getty)
She later revealed that De Minaur’s presence on court helped to De Minaur arrived during the third set as Boulter battled in three hours and 14 minutes to win 6-4 3-6 7-5.
Afterwards she heaped praise on her partner. “That was way too stressful for me,” she said. “That was massively a mental challenge for me. Having him [De Minaur] come out and support means pretty much everything to me. Having the extra positivity from my bench makes the difference. He is my support system. He kind of leads me.”
De Minaur will now face American Tristan Boyer on Thursday. Boulter will next face world No.75 Veronika Kudermetova on the same day as she bids to get beyond the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time.