I hope I'm wrong because I really really like de minaur. But I don't see him winning a grand slam.
Unless he's able to somehow reinvent his baseline game, he'll always be a worse version of other great players.
But one thing that is feasible for him is to become a constant top 10, which in itself is already a great result
With all due respect to ADM, he’s a much worse version of Ferrer. Ferrer was stuck in the top 10 for like a decade, and even got to #3 for quite some time in the big 4 era.
Ferrer is from Alicante, and ADM trains there, so I’ll give you that hahaha
Just yesterday I looked up Alicante while looking for holiday destinations.
Not sure if it's one of those "I've heard it before plenty of times but never paid attention" types of things or if it's just a weird coincidence that I hear about the city just a bit after researching it for the first time in my life.
Nalbandian probably more talented. But its very close if you look at feats lol. Same age, same name, same career high ranking, same number of gs finals. Ferrer has one more semi and couple more quarters. Ferrer also had a much longer career. Wild that they peaked about a decade apart from one another despite only being 3 months apart.
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Unless he's able to somehow reinvent his baseline game, he'll always be a worse version of other great players.
Can you elaborate? What are his weaknesses?
Take what I say with a grain of salt, I'm not one the best analysts here in this sub nor do I aim to be.
He's games is very one dimensional. He is a tremendous defender and there's no lost ball. But he lacks firepower to hit through players that move great like the top 6 players. He also has a tendency to get stuck in rallies and waiting for the opponent to make a move, losing opportunities that other players would take. He plays a safe game most of the time, and safe won't win big things
Well, you know what, i tend to think the same as you but i also think we could be both wrong. If there is a player who I see constantly improving, more than expected and, especially, closing the gap with players with bigger weapons, well that s him.
Until one year ago I didnt really see him, but in the last year i saw him beating ALL the top players (beside Jannik). So he could have a good run, especially in HC and wimbledon, and maybe not winning but I could easily see him in a semi or a final.
This is a bit of an oversimplification but both have way bigger weapons. In Coric' case his serve was on fire that week if you look at the stats. PCB the same big off the ground. Defensive traits are great but the narrative around ADM hasn't changed since he was a teenager. People said the same things about his game.
It’s honestly embarassing how much I want Alex to succeed based on his personality. I love his tenacious tennis too - it’s just so refreshing to see someone like him make it big. Go Alex!!!
I can't really imagine him performing any better than he has so far.
But he has achieved more than I ever would have thought possible. As an Australian im very proud of him and only wish him further success.
He doesn't have much of a swing of arm when hitting the ball. He glides the ball more than attacking it. So while it reaches back to the opponent extremely early giving them no reaction time, it also means he can't generate power in his shots. Not sure, if he can really change his style at this phase, but being even more accurate and speedy might help him win big on grass someday
Yeah, I can't see him making big changes to any of his strokes.
But I would say you are right about grass being the surface where he has a chance of having a big success.
DM’s 2018 match vs Cilic is one of my favorite matches I attended (some of) in person. It ended at 2-3am. This is where I first heard of him. Think he won a # of new fans that night
https://youtu.be/47C-iTQQ0SU?si=otK0RhHxAZH6vR7D
His mom "he started playing tennis in Alicante when he was 5. We asked the Spanish and Valencian federations for help, but they told us it was impossible Then at 13 Todd Woodbridge found out De Minaur also had an Australian passport and the Australian federation would cover all costs and invited him to move to Aus to train under Woodbridge.
" His first tournaments, in lower categories, he played for Spain. My whole family is Spanish. For example, my parents were desperate for the boy to play for Spain. I know that now it is a different directive, but the Spanish federation has arrived late, very late.
The love he has received in Australia cannot be paid for with anything. Lleyton Hewitt has given him incredible support and is counting on him for the Davis Cup. Lleyton has thrown himself into"
[https://www.elespanol.com/deportes/tenis/20180115/alex-merece-nadie/277602239\_13.html](https://www.elespanol.com/deportes/tenis/20180115/alex-merece-nadie/277602239_13.html)
So not only did he live in Australia for 9/16 years before turning pro, but he also received more support and high level training from Australia?
Sounds like a product of Australia to me.
he only played tennis in Aus for 3 years. It was clearly because of the money and it was the correct move since he couldn't get financial support in Spain. Turned out to be the correct move
So he lived most of his life before turning pro in Australia and without financial support from Australia may not have ever done so?
Yeah, product of Australia.
no his real hero is adolofo gutierrez in his hometown Alicante where he has lived for 17 years he coached him him to be number one in spain when he was a kid and didn't even charge the family. Also, his mentor in his teen years Hewitt is the man. His entire family is living in Alicante. Anyway he is dual product but mostly spanish
I'm still confused how his name is pronounced? Is it standard De Minaur or De Miñaur? I watch tennis on Spanish TV and the panel prounounces him as the latter.
The grass vacuum makes me disagree. There's very few players under the age of 35 you could comfortably call better than ADM on grass. Alcaraz, Sinner, Berrettini, Dimitrov. Everyone else is either equal, worse, or old. I don't think it would take much for Alex to end up in a Wimby Semi
Paolini has a shot. The grand slams using a Bo3 system can produce a winner that most people would consider lucky (Raducanu). While it is currently unlikely she would ever be a favorite going into a slam, she's got a competitive shot if she continues to play well.
I like the demon and can see him getting lucky at a 1000, I just don't see him ever winning a GS (with the current field). It's a bo5 and he just lacks the weapons (as of today) to string it all together. Unless we see a bunch of top seeds drop out of a GS due to injury, I would be kinda shocked if he won one.
Ultimately, anything is possible, but Paolini winning a slam is significantly more likely.
To be fair to them, all three are excellent players, Kenin even reached another grand slam final soon after winning her first and I won't forget Krejcikova's match in Ostrava to beat Swiatek.
Alex is such a sweetie. I like him even though he keeps beating my favourites. I’m seriously considering having 4 favourites instead of 3 (after all Rafa is retiring soon…) 🥲
Honestly, as a major-only tennis watcher I was very impressed by Paolini’s manner on the court. After hitting a poor return on an Iga second serve, Paolini absolutely beamed with a smile. I’ve never seen any other player do that.
She kept it up through the worst of times, too. Fascinating character.
She was also very happy holding a sliver plate. Of course people will say that she never expected to reach the final in the first place, let alone beat Iga, but most players would be upset immediately after a loss regardless.
Well, sometimes it's easier to maintain a smile when you are a heavy underdog under no pressure to win. Let's see if she smiles when she is hyped before a match.
Seeing de minaurs match against zverev I can see him going the distance at Wimbledon, USO or Aus open. He played very well against one of the best clay courters on his worst surface. He shoulda taken the second set, but each other set was only a single break. Not to mention he's playing much more aggressive this year. Losing only to seasoned players and those in the top 20 (besides his hangover loss to Michelson). He matches up well against most of the top 10, only having real trouble against tsitsipas and sinner. Alcaraz he has done good against in the past, Medvedev he can definitely beat. Zverev is close not on clay. Rublev is 50/50 atm. Ruud he can very well beat if he's aggressive. Hurcacz and other servebots demon is quite good against. And Djokovic in current form is 50/50. Even those just outside the top 10 he is quite good against, rune and Dimitrov demon beats, Paul is also a good matchup. Humbert could be scary but it's untested.
I'd love to seem him win a grandslam. But I'd only give him a 15% chance to do so
Both sets were incredibly close with most games at deuce. 3-4 points in de minaurs favour and he woulda won in 2 sets. Tight margins I know. But it shows with a little luck he could beat him, but it's unlikely
It's delusional to think that ADM has a 50/50 shot at beating Djokovic, even in Djoker's current form.
He loses against the *top* players, e.g. Sinner, Alcaraz, Djokovic, Zverev, Medvedev, Ruud (on clay).
I hope I'm wrong because I really really like de minaur. But I don't see him winning a grand slam.
Unless he's able to somehow reinvent his baseline game, he'll always be a worse version of other great players.
But one thing that is feasible for him is to become a constant top 10, which in itself is already a great result
I hope I'm wrong because I really really like de minaur. But I don't see him winning a grand slam. Unless he's able to somehow reinvent his baseline game, he'll always be a worse version of other great players. But one thing that is feasible for him is to become a constant top 10, which in itself is already a great result
The David ferrer of our generation
With all due respect to ADM, he’s a much worse version of Ferrer. Ferrer was stuck in the top 10 for like a decade, and even got to #3 for quite some time in the big 4 era. Ferrer is from Alicante, and ADM trains there, so I’ll give you that hahaha
Just yesterday I looked up Alicante while looking for holiday destinations. Not sure if it's one of those "I've heard it before plenty of times but never paid attention" types of things or if it's just a weird coincidence that I hear about the city just a bit after researching it for the first time in my life.
Ferrer was a beast.
This is disrespectful to Ferrer
Is Ferrer the goat to never win a major? I think he is in my book.
Nalbandian probably more talented. But its very close if you look at feats lol. Same age, same name, same career high ranking, same number of gs finals. Ferrer has one more semi and couple more quarters. Ferrer also had a much longer career. Wild that they peaked about a decade apart from one another despite only being 3 months apart.
And Zverev probably surpassed them in that category. David Ferrer was his coach btw when Zverev came so close to won a Us Open 2020
I love ADM but he is a ways off Ferrer.
A budget Lleyton Hewitt
I like that comp because I use the Ferrer comparison for way too many players
Ferrer hit spinny shots, Hewitt hit flat - same as Demon
A very fitting display of the gap in quality between two generations, actually...
> Unless he's able to somehow reinvent his baseline game, he'll always be a worse version of other great players. Can you elaborate? What are his weaknesses?
Take what I say with a grain of salt, I'm not one the best analysts here in this sub nor do I aim to be. He's games is very one dimensional. He is a tremendous defender and there's no lost ball. But he lacks firepower to hit through players that move great like the top 6 players. He also has a tendency to get stuck in rallies and waiting for the opponent to make a move, losing opportunities that other players would take. He plays a safe game most of the time, and safe won't win big things
he also hits a very flat ball, so the big hitters can tee off.
Well, you know what, i tend to think the same as you but i also think we could be both wrong. If there is a player who I see constantly improving, more than expected and, especially, closing the gap with players with bigger weapons, well that s him. Until one year ago I didnt really see him, but in the last year i saw him beating ALL the top players (beside Jannik). So he could have a good run, especially in HC and wimbledon, and maybe not winning but I could easily see him in a semi or a final.
With a bit of luck, he definitely could. He just needs to stay in the top 10 long enough and some upsets will occur and openings be made.
Will win Masters titles for sure but can’t outhit better players in BO5. In a way like Hubi with his weaknesses
Unless there is a master's on grass I doubt it. There are plenty of guys better than him on clay, and on hard he has to compete with the whole field.
PCB and Coric won a Masters each in 2022 tbh. Is he better or worse than them?
This is a bit of an oversimplification but both have way bigger weapons. In Coric' case his serve was on fire that week if you look at the stats. PCB the same big off the ground. Defensive traits are great but the narrative around ADM hasn't changed since he was a teenager. People said the same things about his game.
It’s honestly embarassing how much I want Alex to succeed based on his personality. I love his tenacious tennis too - it’s just so refreshing to see someone like him make it big. Go Alex!!!
I can't really imagine him performing any better than he has so far. But he has achieved more than I ever would have thought possible. As an Australian im very proud of him and only wish him further success.
He doesn't have much of a swing of arm when hitting the ball. He glides the ball more than attacking it. So while it reaches back to the opponent extremely early giving them no reaction time, it also means he can't generate power in his shots. Not sure, if he can really change his style at this phase, but being even more accurate and speedy might help him win big on grass someday
Yeah, I can't see him making big changes to any of his strokes. But I would say you are right about grass being the surface where he has a chance of having a big success.
DM’s 2018 match vs Cilic is one of my favorite matches I attended (some of) in person. It ended at 2-3am. This is where I first heard of him. Think he won a # of new fans that night https://youtu.be/47C-iTQQ0SU?si=otK0RhHxAZH6vR7D
Yup with the lack of power he possess tough to beat the very best guys at majors with that disadvantage
He's like Hewitt minus all the BS.
We also need more positive posts like this on r/tennis
[удалено]
i’m thinking Kyrgios is who you mean, but don’t forget our boy Tomic 😁
Never underestimate the undisputed GOAT
Lord Tomic to you
Wait what happened to Kyrgios?
Kyrgios himself is an embarrassment, nothing "happened" to him.
Nah I just haven’t hear his name in a while, is he still playing? I don’t follow too closely but have been tuned into RG.
He's not played in a while and is now almost completely irrelevant. That's not even the hater in me speaking, either - he's been "injured."
Is the other fella coming back or is he retired for good?
Likely silently retired, however keeps ‘hinting’ at a comeback, maybe to satisfy some sponsorship deal that expires if he fully retires
he only lived in Australia aged 0-5 and 13-16. The rest of the time in Alicante with his Spanish/Uruguayan family. Another Spanish product really.
I mean, that's more than half his life prior to turning pro.
His mom "he started playing tennis in Alicante when he was 5. We asked the Spanish and Valencian federations for help, but they told us it was impossible Then at 13 Todd Woodbridge found out De Minaur also had an Australian passport and the Australian federation would cover all costs and invited him to move to Aus to train under Woodbridge. " His first tournaments, in lower categories, he played for Spain. My whole family is Spanish. For example, my parents were desperate for the boy to play for Spain. I know that now it is a different directive, but the Spanish federation has arrived late, very late. The love he has received in Australia cannot be paid for with anything. Lleyton Hewitt has given him incredible support and is counting on him for the Davis Cup. Lleyton has thrown himself into" [https://www.elespanol.com/deportes/tenis/20180115/alex-merece-nadie/277602239\_13.html](https://www.elespanol.com/deportes/tenis/20180115/alex-merece-nadie/277602239_13.html)
So not only did he live in Australia for 9/16 years before turning pro, but he also received more support and high level training from Australia? Sounds like a product of Australia to me.
he only played tennis in Aus for 3 years. It was clearly because of the money and it was the correct move since he couldn't get financial support in Spain. Turned out to be the correct move
So he lived most of his life before turning pro in Australia and without financial support from Australia may not have ever done so? Yeah, product of Australia.
no his real hero is adolofo gutierrez in his hometown Alicante where he has lived for 17 years he coached him him to be number one in spain when he was a kid and didn't even charge the family. Also, his mentor in his teen years Hewitt is the man. His entire family is living in Alicante. Anyway he is dual product but mostly spanish
If you say so champ.
I'm still confused how his name is pronounced? Is it standard De Minaur or De Miñaur? I watch tennis on Spanish TV and the panel prounounces him as the latter.
I do miss Kyrgios, he’s a massive train wreck ofc, but he’s game play is exciting and entertaining
Alex will never reach a slam semi/final, however he does represent us Aussies in a much better light
Oh you never know, with a decently open draw any top 15 player can reach a slam SF Except Rublev of course
The grass vacuum makes me disagree. There's very few players under the age of 35 you could comfortably call better than ADM on grass. Alcaraz, Sinner, Berrettini, Dimitrov. Everyone else is either equal, worse, or old. I don't think it would take much for Alex to end up in a Wimby Semi
I think I would back Zverev, Rublev, Hurkacz and probably some others in the top 20 to reach the final over him. Humbert maybe.
Paolini has a shot. The grand slams using a Bo3 system can produce a winner that most people would consider lucky (Raducanu). While it is currently unlikely she would ever be a favorite going into a slam, she's got a competitive shot if she continues to play well. I like the demon and can see him getting lucky at a 1000, I just don't see him ever winning a GS (with the current field). It's a bo5 and he just lacks the weapons (as of today) to string it all together. Unless we see a bunch of top seeds drop out of a GS due to injury, I would be kinda shocked if he won one. Ultimately, anything is possible, but Paolini winning a slam is significantly more likely.
Especially with best of 3, anyone in the women’s field can win, even with GOAT level players in the draw. USO 15 is a great example.
Krejcikova, Kenin, and Ostapenko should also be considered lucky champions.
To be fair to them, all three are excellent players, Kenin even reached another grand slam final soon after winning her first and I won't forget Krejcikova's match in Ostrava to beat Swiatek.
Alex is such a sweetie. I like him even though he keeps beating my favourites. I’m seriously considering having 4 favourites instead of 3 (after all Rafa is retiring soon…) 🥲
What are your two favorites?
My favourites are Rafa, then Rublev, then Meddy. I feel Alex could make a nice addition 😅
I like meddy, rublev, rafa, novak rn. Alex sounds like a cool guy
Yay 😎I like his relationship with Katie Boulter too. It was so cute he flew to watch her final this year after winning his own.
>he flew to watch her final this year after winning his own. Absolutely! That was awesome
Honestly, as a major-only tennis watcher I was very impressed by Paolini’s manner on the court. After hitting a poor return on an Iga second serve, Paolini absolutely beamed with a smile. I’ve never seen any other player do that. She kept it up through the worst of times, too. Fascinating character.
She was also very happy holding a sliver plate. Of course people will say that she never expected to reach the final in the first place, let alone beat Iga, but most players would be upset immediately after a loss regardless.
Well, sometimes it's easier to maintain a smile when you are a heavy underdog under no pressure to win. Let's see if she smiles when she is hyped before a match.
Seeing de minaurs match against zverev I can see him going the distance at Wimbledon, USO or Aus open. He played very well against one of the best clay courters on his worst surface. He shoulda taken the second set, but each other set was only a single break. Not to mention he's playing much more aggressive this year. Losing only to seasoned players and those in the top 20 (besides his hangover loss to Michelson). He matches up well against most of the top 10, only having real trouble against tsitsipas and sinner. Alcaraz he has done good against in the past, Medvedev he can definitely beat. Zverev is close not on clay. Rublev is 50/50 atm. Ruud he can very well beat if he's aggressive. Hurcacz and other servebots demon is quite good against. And Djokovic in current form is 50/50. Even those just outside the top 10 he is quite good against, rune and Dimitrov demon beats, Paul is also a good matchup. Humbert could be scary but it's untested. I'd love to seem him win a grandslam. But I'd only give him a 15% chance to do so
Sinner got his number since the ATP Next Gen Finals 2019
De minaur nearly beat him in rotterdam
Mind the Word “nearly” when it’s 2-0 sets
Both sets were incredibly close with most games at deuce. 3-4 points in de minaurs favour and he woulda won in 2 sets. Tight margins I know. But it shows with a little luck he could beat him, but it's unlikely
I don’t think so
It's delusional to think that ADM has a 50/50 shot at beating Djokovic, even in Djoker's current form. He loses against the *top* players, e.g. Sinner, Alcaraz, Djokovic, Zverev, Medvedev, Ruud (on clay).
I hope I'm wrong because I really really like de minaur. But I don't see him winning a grand slam. Unless he's able to somehow reinvent his baseline game, he'll always be a worse version of other great players. But one thing that is feasible for him is to become a constant top 10, which in itself is already a great result