Has Alex de Minaur found his good-luck charm at Roland Garros?
The No. 11 in the PIF ATP Rankings on Monday defeated Daniil Medvedev in four sets to become the first Australian male quarter-finalist at the clay-court major since 2004. The result was of particular delight to a certain young fan watching the match on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.
Two days ago, De Minaur noted the enthusiastic support of the French supporter during his third-round victory against Jan-Lennard Struff. The pair celebrated the Australian star’s eventual four-set victory in that match together courtside and, although he did not know the fan’s name, De Minaur later invited his ‘lucky charm’ to the match through social media.
“I need to find the name of this legend!!!” wrote De Minaur on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Message me on instagram, I need you for the next round.”
I need to find the name of this legend!!! Message me on instagram, I need you for the next round 😍👊🙌 https://t.co/VCOvzXmTWh
— alex de minaur (@alexdeminaur) June 1, 2024
It appears De Minaur's public appeal worked. Two days later, the same fan was sat in the stands not far from his player box to witness the Australian’s hard-fought triumph against Medvedev. After his 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 fourth-round win against the former World No. 1, De Minaur invited the youngster onto court and the pair even gave a joint television interview in French.
“He's managed a miracle,” De Minaur said, cracking a smile. “Might have to get him on Tour week in, week out.
“We found him obviously through the beautiful world of social media, we ended up finding him. We got him to the match. He came with his whole crew, with his mates and his coach.
“It was great to see him out there. Again, even on that big court, I could hear him after every single point. It's a distinctive voice, so it's great to see. He'll be around. I think he'll be chilling with me tomorrow in my practice day, and of course he'll be there for the very next match.”
The eight-time ATP Tour champion will take on Alexander Zverev or Holger Rune in his second Grand Slam quarter-final appearance.
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