Alex de Minaur, Nick Kyrgios learn Australian Open fates
Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios have huge obstacles ahead of them after the draw was made for the 2025 Australian Open.
Tennis
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Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios weren’t done many favours after the draw was conducted for the 2025 Australian Open on Thursday.
De Minaur, the eighth-seed and the host nation’s best hope of a Melbourne Park breakthrough, has been drawn in the same quarter of the draw as Italian world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.
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Kyrgios, meanwhile, who has apparently made it to the starting line after injury clouded his participation, has a date with the No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev in the third round if he manages to make it that far.
De Minaur, who has made it to the fourth round of his home grand slam for the past three years, is desperate to finally crack the quarter-finals and beyond at his ninth attempt.
The 25-year-old begins his campaign against Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp, who pulled off a huge shock by ousting Carlos Alcaraz in the second round of last year’s US Open.
Stefanos Tsitsipas could await in the fourth round and if he is still alive, the “Demon” would then likely face Sinner in the quarters, a man he is yet to beat in nine attempts.
Kyrgios, 29, has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons over the past week after his feud with Sinner over his positive doping tests last year led the Australian to fire shots at 16-year-old Cruz Hewitt.
The son of Lleyton had a practise session with Sinner and Kyrgios couldn’t help launching himself into Hewitt’s Instagram post to send off a series of comments that brought serious backlash against the former Wimbledon finalist.
Contesting his first Australian Open since 2022, Kyrgios will take on Britain’s Jacob Fearnley first up before a potential clash with No. 28 seed Sebastien Baez in the second round.
The only way Kyrgios will meet Sinner is if both players make it all the way to the final.
Sinner begins his tilt at a second straight title against the unseeded Nicolas Jarry.
Four-time grand slam champion and No. 3 seed Alcaraz, who hasn’t been beyond the quarter-finals in Melbourne, meets Alexander Shevchenko in his opening match.
On the women’s side, Australian 16-year-old Emerson Jones faces a baptism of fire in her first senior grand slam after being drawn to face No. 6 seed Elena Rybakina.
Jones, who turned heads with a straight-sets demolition of world No. 37 Xinyu Wang in her WTA tour debut in Adelaide this week, will need to bring down the 2022 Wimbledon champion to win on her Australian Open debut.
Rybakina was not the only tough first-round opponent handed to an Australian, with fellow wildcard Maya Joint drawn against No. 7 seed Jessica Pegula.
Daria Saville was also set for a difficult encounter against unseeded Russian Anna Blinkova, who made it to the third round at Melbourne Park last year.
Olivia Gadecki, the only Australian woman to automatically qualify for the main draw, was handed world No. 77 Veronika Kudermetova in the first round.
Gadecki faces a crowded section of the draw, with a potential second-round clash to follow against British star and De Minaur’s fiancee Katie Boulter.
Women’s top seed and two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka earned a tricky match-up with former US Open champion Sloane Stephens in her first encounter.
It’s not much easier for third seed Coco Gauff, considered Sabalenka’s biggest challenger this year, who drew another grand slam champion in 2020 Australian Open winner Sofia Kenin.
The tournament gets underway this Sunday
– with NewsWire
Originally published as Alex de Minaur, Nick Kyrgios learn Australian Open fates
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