Alex de Minaur knocked off Jack Draper in a high-stakes match at the Rolex Paris Masters that has the Aussie in position to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. Needing to secure a quarterfinal spot in Paris to pass Andrey Rublev for No. 8 in the live race, De Minaur defeated Draper 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 during third-round action on Thursday afternoon.
Draper has been red hot dating back to the hard-court summer, highlighted by a U.S. Open semifinal run followed by a title in Vienna this past weekend. However, the 15th-ranked Brit could not consolidate a set advantage against an inspired opponent.
“It took every ounce of me, and I’m just happy that I was able to rally,” De Minaur said afterward. “I’m gonna put my body on the line. I’m gonna try my hardest. I’m gonna show my opponent that I can do that all day…. That’s what it took today.”
The world No. 10 is tentatively up to eighth in the race, although fellow Turin contenders Grigor Dimitrov, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Holger Rune are still alive in Paris. There are also two ATP 250 tournaments on next week’s schedule, so results in Belgrade and Metz could have an impact.
“You can never say ‘job done’ in the middle of a tournament,” De Minaur assured. “That’s not in my DNA. Obviously (I’m) super stoked with the win today, but it’s on to the next.”
The ninth seed awaits either Rune or lucky loser Arthur Cazaux in the quarters on Friday.
nice one, Demon