Australian tennis star Alex de Minaur says he’s feeling the “best” he ever has after missing time on the court due to a bout with COVID-19.
Having fallen out of the top 20 ranking to No.34, de Minaur has his eyes set on a big summer of tennis, starting with Australia’s ATP Cup bid, followed by the Australian Open.
The 22-year-old was a late withdrawal from Australia’s Tokyo Olympics squad after testing positive to COVID-19.
In his first Grand Slam after testing positive, just weeks after the Olympics, the Australian suffered a first round exit at the US Open.
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Admitting it was a “tough time” to deal with, de Minaur says he’s confident he’s put in the right preparation to have a big summer of tennis in Australia.
“It was a tough time for me… I was really looking forward to going to my first Olympics,” he told Nine’s Today.
“I had to bounce back. If anything this pandemic has taught us – is to adapt and be versatile.
“I’m happy to say that I’m feeling the best I have ever felt now.
“I’ve had some time to recover, train really hard and put the right things into my body.
“I’m really looking forward to go. I’m feeling the best I’ve ever felt.”
Speaking on Australia’s ATP Cup bid, de Minaur cheekily conceded he hopes the weather is “as hot as possible” to give the home nation an advantage.
“We’ve got a great team of guys here in Sydney, who are ready to go out there and put on the green and gold and represent Australia,” he said.
“We’re really excited, we’re playing in our backyard.
“We kind of want it to be as hot as possible to make sure the heat gets to all our competitors since we’re kind of used to it. The hotter the better.”
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