Australian Open: Novak Djokovic beats Alex de Minaur and reaches the quarter-finals | Australian Open 2023

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In the moments before Novak Djokovic stepped into Rod Laver Arena on Monday night, as he went through his final warm-ups in the tunnel under the court, the eyes of spectators rested firmly on his left thigh. How will the hamstrings, still wrapped in layers of tape, hold up under the pressure of at least three other groups?

Two hours later, Djokovic’s form of dominance over home favorite Alex de Minaur showed he was still the favorite to win his 10th Australian Open title. The fourth seed returned to the quarterfinals after a clean and sloppy performance, completely dismantling his 22nd seed opponent, 6-2, 6-1, 6-2.

“Definitely the best tennis I’ve played this year, this tournament, so far this season,” said Djokovic. “Best match. I’m really happy because obviously as the tournament progresses, the matches are going to get more and more difficult. I’m really happy that I was able to win the way I did tonight. To feel really great in terms of movement and my leg movement, which is good news. So in general General, a perfect match for me.”

De Minaur arrived against the best player in the world with perfect preparation. He had started the year with his first victory over a member of the Big Three, beating Rafael Nadal in the Fed Cup, and followed up his first foray last year into the Australian Open week two with a similar run.

That wasn’t enough. Early on, De Minaur tried to force himself in the exchanges, constantly taking the ball up and trying to dictate. But the discrepancy between shot weight was immediately stark. Even as he threw all his weight behind the forehand and furiously tried to stay on top of the baseline, De Minaur simply couldn’t push his opponent back.

After absorbing some pressure in the first game, Djokovic climbed inside the baseline and took complete control. He served exceptionally well, hitting the ball exceptionally from both wings, slashing through the De Minaur defense with ease, and his movement becoming increasingly fluid.

De Minaur is an impressive player with many assets. One of the fastest in the world, he looks to take the ball up and fight to the death. But the nine-time champion revealed his poor style, outplayed and outplayed him while allowing the Australian just nine winners in three sets.

After his previous sets win over Grigor Dimitrov, Djokovic spoke at length about his injury. He described his previous matches as rollercoasters, with only cereal and hot cream to help him qualify. This time, however, there were no problems. The warmer he is in the match, the more freely he moves, the more he dominates. He said, “I didn’t feel anything today.”

In previous rounds, changing directions and other extreme movements had caused him pain, and he added that he was still not sure how his body would react to future matches, but on Monday night he felt better. “When I’m free in my mind, that’s what happens on the field like tonight,” he said.

Fans turned out in force to watch Novak Djokovic fight with Australian Alex de Minaur. Photograph: Carl Reisen/Reuters

Djokovic will face fifth seed Andrei Rublev, who outlasted ninth seed Holger Rohn, in a chaotic and crazy five-set match. Despite performing poorly in most of the final set, Rublev was sharp in key moments.

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He rallied from being 2-5 down in the final set, then at 5-6, 15-40 he saved two match points with an unreturned serve and a forehand win before closing out the match with a back-to-back header. In the silly tiebreaker that followed, he trailed 0-5 and 4-7 before dragging himself backwards against a very negative talisman. On his second match point, Rublev grabbed the win on a tightrope right after returning with a backhand.

Rublev was asked by the court investigator about the oath of withdrawal that he had inherited. “Nobody wants to face Novak. I’d rather be in any other part of the draw, but not Novak,” he said, not even acknowledging that Djokovic had to play another match first. Djokovic’s performance provided an ample explanation as to why, after so long, he still Feared by the best players in the world.

“A week ago I didn’t really think about the title, I just thought about being in good enough shape to play the next match until tonight. Tonight, the way I played and the way I felt gives me reason now to believe I can move on,” said Djokovic.

20-year-old American Ben Shelton reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final with a score of 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-7(4), 7-6(4), 6.2 victory over compatriot J. J Wolf. Chilton, who was an amateur college player until last summer, never left the United States until he traveled to Australia to start his senior season on tour. He will face another countryman, Tommy Paul, in the quarter-finals.

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