Alcaraz storms past De Minaur into semi-finals

Carlos Alcaraz continued his quest to become the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam as he charged past Alex de Minaur to reach his first Australian Open semi-final.

The 22-year-old silenced the crowd on Rod Laver Arena as he beat De Minaur 7-5 6-2 6-1 to end Australia’s hopes of a home singles champion for another year.

Alcaraz has six Grand Slam titles – having won the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open twice apiece – but this is the first time he has reached the last four in Melbourne.

Yet to drop a set at this year’s event, the Spaniard said he keeps improving as the tournament goes on.

“I’m happy with the way I am playing here. From the first round to now, I am increasing my level every match,” said Alcaraz, who will face German third seed Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals.

De Minaur, who was hoping to make it to his first Grand Slam semi-final at the seventh time of asking, had not beaten world number one Alcaraz in five previous attempts.

In a tight opening set, De Minaur thrilled the crowd with aggressive hitting as he tried to match the world number one’s speed and intensity.

He twice clawed his way back from a break down before the top seed struck the decisive blow at 6-5 after almost an hour on court.

Former Wimbledon winner Pat Cash said the first set showcased “some of the highest level tennis I’ve ever seen”.

“It was two players refusing to back down, they were hitting balls from two or three feet behind the baseline,” Cash told BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra.

“It was like a video game, pinging backwards and forwards. It was so quick; there were drop shots, defensive lobs, chase backs, there was everything. An unbelievable set of tennis.”

But the gap in quality soon became evident as Alcaraz raised his level and De Minaur struggled to land any punches on the six-time major winner’s serve.

Zverev thanked his serve for guiding him past an “unbelievable” Learner Tien earlier on Tuesday.

The 20-year-old Tien, ranked 29th in the world, was bidding to become the youngest man to reach the last four in Melbourne for 34 years.

But Zverev produced a serving masterclass to reach his 10th Grand Slam semi-final with a 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-1 7-6 (7-3) victory on Rod Laver Arena.

A beaten finalist last year, Zverev fired down 24 aces and committed just one double fault alongside winning 76% of his first-serve points.

He saved all three break points he faced with an unreturned serve.

“Learner, from the baseline, was playing unbelievable,” Zverev said.

“I don’t think I’ve played anyone who plays that well from the baseline for a very long time.

Zverev said this year’s Australian Open is the first time he has been playing “pain-free” in 12 months.

The 28-year-old tore ligaments in his ankle during his French Open semi-final against Rafael Nadal in 2022 – a career-threatening injury that kept him out of action for six months.

“The last 10 days I felt healthy, and pain-free, which I haven’t felt in a long time. Probably in 12 months,” Zverev said after his win over Tien.

“I feel like I’m happy on the court because I am playing pain-free and a good level.”

Zverev has improved his serve in recent years, adding more consistency after double faults previously plagued his game.

In 2020, when he reached the semi-finals in Melbourne and the final at the US Open, he was averaging 5.9 double faults per match.