Playing his first singles match since his Wimbledon injury withdrawal, Alex de Minaur has returned to the winner’s circle at the US Open.
New York, United States, 28 August 2024 | Matt Trollope
Alex de Minaur had not played a singles match in more than six weeks, but showed glimpses of his best in progressing to the second round of the US Open.
The No.10 seed beat Marcos Giron 6-3 6-4 5-7 6-4 to reach the second round at Flushing Meadows for the sixth time, where he will next face Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen.
It was another great result for Australia’s men on Day 2 of the US Open, after earlier wins for Jordan Thompson, Tristan Schoolkate and Thanasi Kokkinakis, who stunned Stefanos Tsitsipas.
> READ: Thompson charges into second round at US Open 2024
> READ: Wildcard Tristan Schoolkate achieves major breakthrough at US Open 2024
De Minaur sustained a hip cartilage tear in his fourth-round Wimbledon victory over Arthur Fils in early July, forcing him to withdraw ahead of his quarterfinal with Novak Djokovic.
Aside from one outing in doubles at the Paris 2024 Olympics, he had not played a match since.
But back on the courts where he reached his first major quarterfinal in 2020 and advanced to the fourth round last year, De Minaur rediscovered his winning ways.
“It means a lot,” De Minaur told Stan Sport, describing the condition of his hip as “OK” and neither “amazing” nor “horrible”.
“I’ve done my best to get back on the court and just feel very happy. I feel happy that I’m back on court and being able to compete.”
The 25-year-old broke midway through the first set, and late in the second, to win the opening two sets, and then broke Giron to love in the opening game of the third to move into a commanding position.
It was here where his lack of recent match-fitness showed; the American broke back immediately to set the tone for a topsy-turvy set, during which De Minaur was broken four times and Giron was buoyed by a vocal home crowd.
Giron sent the match to a fourth set, where De Minaur was forced to call on his famed competitive spirit and remain patient in what was a gruelling battle.
De Minuar survived the toughest of fourth games, staving off five break points to hold for 2-2. He then held two break points of his own in the seventh game, but couldn’t convert.
But the Aussie’s steadiness eventually wore down Giron, who imploded in the ninth game with four consecutive unforced errors,…
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