Alex De Minaur Ends Novak Djokovic’s Australian Winning Streak with a Surprise Victory

In a major tennis upset, Novak Djokovic suffered his first loss of the season and his first in Australia in six years, falling to Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-4. This defeat handed Australia a 1-0 lead against Serbia in their United Cup quarter-final match on Wednesday. Djokovic, who had a right wrist issue during Serbia’s victory over the Czech Republic, received treatment before the match but couldn’t stop De Minaur from securing the first set.

Djokovic, the Australian Open champion, lost his serve again in the second set, giving De Minaur a 4-3 lead. Despite saving three match points, Djokovic couldn’t avert the unexpected loss, which comes ahead of the Australian Open later this month. Djokovic had been on a 43-match winning streak in Australia, last losing in the country in the 2018 Australian Open fourth round to Chung Hyeon due to an elbow problem.

De Minaur, ranked 12th globally, described the victory as extremely special and surreal. He praised Djokovic’s contributions to the sport and expressed his delight in achieving the win in Perth, Australia.

In other United Cup matches, top seeds Poland defeated China to reach the semi-finals. Hubert Hurkacz beat Zhang Zhizhen 6-3, 6-4, while Iga Swiatek came back from a 2-0 deficit in the first set to defeat Zheng Qinwen 6-2, 6-3. Swiatek, the world number one, used the event as preparation for the Australian Open.

France advanced to the quarter-finals, with Caroline Garcia and Adrian Mannarino securing a win over Italy. Garcia overcame Jasmine Paolini 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, and Mannarino defeated Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 6-4 in their Group D match.

In Group B, Greece gained a 1-0 lead over Canada, with Australian Open runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas winning his first singles match of the season against Steven Diez 6-2, 6-3. The Australian Open is scheduled to run from January 14 to 28.