Alex de Minaur is through to the second round of the Australian Open after overcoming a shaky start against Italian Lorenzo Musetti to clinch the match in four sets, 3-6, 6-3, 6-0, 6-3.
De Minaur kick-started his 2022 Australian Open campaign with a worrying opening set after conceding two breakpoints and notching 11 unforced errors.
Fortunately for the Australian, losing the opener spurred him to go up a gear, notching the early break in the second set.
After taking the second set, it was a comfortable ride for de Mindaur, who dominated on serve in the third and fourth sets to clinch a first-round win against the No.60-ranked Musetti.
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“He’s (Musetti) a very talented player, he went five sets with Novak Djokovic [at the French Open], so I knew it would be a tough match,” de Minaur said during his on-court interview.
“I was happy I was able to turn it around after the first set and play some good tennis.”
The 22-year-old credited the crowd for helping him stay positive, urging the fans at Margaret Court Arena to let him know if does the opposite in future matches.
“The most important thing is, I stayed positive throughout the entire match,” he added.
“Positive vibes only for 2022. Basically, I’m not allowed to get negative on court.
“So if you guys see me negative on court – make sure to tell me off.”
Early on in the match, de Minaur had one of the most bizarre moments tennis can produce when he was forced to keep playing after losing a shoe mid-point.
He was left asking questions of chair umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore after play was allowed to continue, with his left shoe lying on the court.
“Look at what happened! I’ve never seen that before,” said former British star Samantha Smith in commentary for Nine.
“I was waiting for umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore to call a let here.
“He did actually go up to umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore at the end and say, ‘Is that not a let?’. But he didn’t push it.
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