Demon’s golden shot at Aussie history as US Open draw opens up after No.3 seed sent packing

Under significant pressure in New York on Saturday, Alex de Minaur kicked into gear to outlast German Daniel Altmaier to reach the second week of the US Open.

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The sole Australian left alive at Flushing Meadows after Daria Kasatkina fell to Naomi Osaka in three sets, de Minaur trailed a set and faced break points early in the second against a player who had prevailed in two marathons already this week.

The No.8 seed held firm and ground down an opponent running on fumes, who retired with what appeared a leg injury early in the fourth set when trailing 6-7 (7) 6-3 6-4 2-0.

A golden opportunity now awaits de Minaur, who is seeking to reach the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows for the third time. He faces Swiss qualifier Leandro Reidi, who is enjoying the tournament of his life and progressed when Kamil Majchrzak retired while trailing 3-5.

Reidi is ranked 435 in the world but is far more talented.

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A couple of years ago in Wimbledon qualifying, he upset Thanasi Kokkinakis when the South Australian was in good form after performing well at Roland Garros.

The US Open prospects aside, it is an important win for de Minaur, as it firms up his prospects of playing in the season-ending championships in Turin.

De Minaur was well aware of how hard Altmaier had worked to progress to the third round.

“Going into that match, look, I know he spent ten hours on court, right. He can’t hide away from that. And the fact that he’s such a good competitor, he came out ready for a battle, right?” de Minaur said.

“That first set kind of slipped away from me, but in the back of my mind I knew if I could make this physical, then I was probably going to be in a better shape, a little bit fresher than he was.

“But yeah, even though saying that, it was complicated, because he’s playing with such amazing confidence. He’s had some great wins. His match against (Stefanos) Tsitsipas was an absolute epic. I think over the years, he’s changed his style of play, and he’s become a more aggressive player. At the same time, he becomes a lot more dangerous this way.

“So the first set slipped away, but I did well to kind of lock in. At the start of the second, saving some crucial breakpoints, I then managed to kind of swing the momentum my way and then things started to feel a little bit better.”

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The Australian’s draw is further ajar, with Felix Auger-Aliassime knocking out No.3 seed Alexander Zverev in four sets on Louis Armstrong Stadium on Saturday night.

De Minaur has not made it to a major semifinal. But his consistency in putting himself into contention is exemplary and he was due to face Zverev in a quarterfinal if both progressed.

He has reached the 4th Rd in eight of his last nine majors, something only Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic can claim.

“It’s a great stat to have. It shows my consistency, myself, what I pride myself in is showing up every single day,” he said.

“You know, I can have some good days or bad days on the tennis court, but ultimately I’m still going to go out there and compete and fight till the very last point.

“I mean, I’m very happy with that stat, and now it’s about taking it to the next level. You know, breaking some new barriers. That’s the goal.”

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