(Toronto) It would be wrong to claim, given the score all to his advantage, that Alex de Minaur easily advanced to the National Bank Open final. He beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the semi-finals, yes, but his performance could have been more convincing.
De Minaur was vulnerable, although he managed to defeat the Spaniard on Saturday in two sets of 6-1 and 6-3.
There is almost nothing to say about the first installment of this game. De Minaur finished the set in a short 30 minutes, mainly because his opponent came flat.
“To be honest, I was really, really nervous before the game,” a disappointed Davidovich Fokina said bluntly after the game.
In all his matches since the start of the tournament, notably against Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud, the 37th racket in the world had started his matches like a lion, with his mane attached. He had never conceded the first set to his opponent this week.
Except that in the most important match of his season, even of his career, Davidovich Fokina collapsed. Step by step.
No aces, 4 double faults, 41% of his points won on the first pitch and 56% of his points won at the net. All of these bleak statistics are, however, even less revealing than the following two…
Twenty-two unforced errors and only two break points saved out of nine.
” I did not feel well. I was behind on all the balls. I didn’t give up, but it was a tough day at the office,” he said.
Alex de Minaur has been turning everything around from the start of the week. All the players who crossed his path suffered in these two categories. However, to hope to reach the final of a Masters 1000, you have to know how to limit the damage. Something that Davidovich Fokina was unable to do, giving the Toronto public the spectacle of a long agony.
What was most appalling about this match was how many Minaur failed to seriously take advantage of their rival’s shortcomings. The match lasted 77 minutes, but if the Australian had played as he had done all week long, this duel could have been concluded in less than an hour.
De Minaur has complicated his life, especially in the service. With only 47% first serves, expect to pay the price in the Masters 1000 semi-finals.
The 18th player in the world was broken twice, when he was just two games away from victory at 4-1.
Davidovich Fokina stood tall, but his efforts were in vain. Against any other opponent, de Minaur could have been played a nasty trick. He held on, but not without difficulty.
Once the ball was in play, he was often nonchalant and exhausted, especially on the backhand.
“I think in a game like this, you don’t want to overanalyze too much. The conditions were really complicated. It was not ideal for playing perfect tennis and I knew it from the moment I stepped onto the court. I knew it wasn’t going to be pretty,” the winner said at a press conference.
“I think my strength is my versatility. And I’m able to adjust, because I have different game plans against each player. »
If he wins the title, however, no one will remember this somewhat shaky semi-final. Right now, the manner doesn’t matter. De Minaur has to convince himself that he has a place in the final, and when he enters center court this Sunday at 4 p.m. he will have to act as if none of the above matters. Because it is.
Although he seems to have made his way into the top 20 for good, de Minaur will be making his first appearance in a Masters 1000 final.
“It feels like all the hard work, on and off the pitch, is finally paying off. It often happens to work hard and not get the desired results. So it’s always a huge dose of confidence when you’re able to put on matches. But right now, the job is not done. »
He has just returned from a lost final in Los Cabos, and he intends to win this time. Although he doesn’t want to project himself too much, he insists that a title in Toronto could have a huge impact on the rest of his season and his career.
“It would be a big step,” he revealed. […] I want to prove a lot of people wrong. This is probably what motivates me the most. I am proud of what I do. But I feel a lot of satisfaction when I manage to prove to people that they were not right. »
