'He has no weapons': Reaction to de Minaur's US Open exit, one glaring weakness evident
The wait continues for Alex de Minaur to break his Grand Slam quarter-final hoodoo, and it was the same old story that cost him dearly in New York.
The 26-year-old, who had never surpassed the last eight of a major tournament in five attempts, was aiming to make it sixth time lucky against 2021 semi-finalist Felix Auger-Aliassime.
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De Minaur ticked one milestone to claim his first-ever set in a Grand Slam quarter-final to lead 6-4, but he couldn't carry the momentum as he exited the tournament in four sets, despite holding a 5-2 cushion in the fourth.
"Right now, I'm looking at this like a wasted opportunity. It's tough," a disappointed de Minaur said.
"There's no other way I'm probably going to deal with this, but just seeing it straight, and that's what today was. Today was an opportunity to break new ground. I was nowhere near the level I needed to be at.
"That's frustrating, because you don't get these chances often."
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De Minaur's first serve percentage let him down as he made only 42 per cent, coupled with 11 double faults.
A lingering issue that constantly arises when it counts most, the Sydneysider is aware that his serve needs to improve.
"It's just in those big matches, that's the first thing that kind of goes away," he said. "And it's a shame because the only thing it does is it just creates a lot more pressure on everything else.
"As the match goes on, I'm playing with second serves, I'm on the back foot, I feel like I've got to do a little bit more. Then I start missing groundstrokes, which I probably wouldn't do.
"It all comes down to that serve."
Social media was unforgiving in their assessment of the Demon's performance.
The world No.8 has to adjust to a quick turnaround, with the final round of Davis Cup qualifying against Belgium scheduled for September 13-14 at Sydney's Ken Rosewall Arena.
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