The All Australian clash between ‘The Demon’ and ‘The Duck’ at Wimbledon proved tighter than anticipated on Tuesday as Alex de Minaur was properly tested by James Duckworth, who later predicted his compatriot was capable of a big run in London.
Ultimately the Australian No. 1s poise when it mattered most proved the difference as he edged his former hitting partner and mate to win 7-6 (1) 7-6 (3) 7-6 (4) in a match lasting 3hr 4min that was twice interrupted by rain.
Both players had their moments in a scrappy affair played in tricky conditions, with the court surface slippery and the balls heavier due to the drizzle that fell at various stages on a grey, wintry day in the English capital.
Duckworth served for the second and third sets, only for the world No. 9 to rally at the death to set up a clash with Spaniard Jaume Munar, who he recently defeated at Roland Garros.
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Joining de Minaur in the second round is Alexei Popyrin, who was too good for Thiago Monteiro 6-4 6-7 (6) 6-3 6-4 in a match lasting 2hr 34min, while Adam Walton won his first grand slam match when defeating Federico Coria 6-3 6-3 7-5.
Jordan Thompson and Aleks Vukic won their opening round matches on Monday, as did Daria Saville. Ajla Tomljanovic failed to back up her strong form in Birmingham when beaten 6-1 6-2 by former Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko.
Duckworth lamented after his loss that he had failed to serve anywhere near his best, though his ability to find strong serves when under pressure was a factor in his ability to extend his rival. But he was also certain de Minaur played far below his peak form as well.
“I don’t think it was his best match. He’d probably say that as well. He could have played better, for sure,” Duckworth said.
“(But it was the) first round (against) another Aussie. (He may have been) nervous and he hasn’t played a match for 10 days or so. So a number of factors go into that.
“But he’s a very good player, especially on this surface. He’s only going to get better, I think, from this match and, yeah, I hope he wins the tournament.”
A couple of critical areas ensured de Minaur’s team, who were sitting courtside, and Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt, who was positioned not too far away, remained on the edge of their seats despite the chill of the day.
The 25-year-old’s inability to make the most of his opportunities on the Duckworth serve – he converted just three of 19 break points – enabled the veteran to not only stay with him but also put him under pressure at different stages in the second and third sets.
De Minaur, who is the winner of two ATP Tour titles this year, may have been slightly rusty given a gap of a fortnight between matches.
But credit must go to Duckworth, who performed well in Germany early in the grass court season, for his resistance. While he may not have found the precision he was seeking on his first serve in general, he continued to produce quality points under extreme pressure.
De Minaur, too, was less consistent on his first serve with a strike-rate below 50 percent in the first two sets, though when he landed the delivery, he tended to win most of the points against his 78th ranked rival.
The Sydneysider has won all three of his meetings against Munar on the main ATP Tour, including the straight sets win at Roland Garros, after the Spaniard had the better of him on lower-tier circuits around Spain when they were teenagers.
Popyrin, meanwhile, was delighted with the way he moved after claiming his first win at Wimbledon since 2019 when too strong for Monteiro.
After exiting Roland Garros when beaten in five sets by Thanasi Kokkinakis, he spent the next couple of weeks working on his footwork on grass and believes he is reaping the rewards for his diligence.
“It’s a lot more like smaller steps … on the recovery and stuff, to try not to keep the feet too wide, because then you’d slip,” he said.
“And … I grew up on hard courts and clay courts and take long strides (and) you slide on the clay courts. And I think I’m really good at that.
“But on the grass (you have to) take small steps. It’s not easy for me. I have to get lower also. So that’s also something we worked on in the gym and it just all kind of came together.”
Follow live updates from de Minaur’s first-round match below.
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Source Agencies
