‘I’m not satisfied’: Alex de Minaur is coming off the best year of his career, but the Aussie ace is hungry for more in 2025

Alex de Minaur is fresh off the best year of his career, but the Aussie ace is hungry for even more success in 2025 which begins with the United Cup in Sydney this weekend.

Alex de Minaur may be coming off the best year of his career, but the Australian tennis star says he’s “not satisfied” and that he wants more in 2025 as he looks to again use the United Cup as a springboard for the first major of the season.

A fourth round finish at the Australian Open back in January, followed by quarter-final finishes at the three other grand slams, helped the 25-year-old reach a career-high ranking of six in the world.

De Minaur will head into the Australian summer ranked ninth after he featured in the ATP Finals for the first time in his career but lost all three of his matches as he battled the hip injury that plagued him for second half of the year.

That hip issue forced him to withdraw from his Wimbledon quarter-final against Novak Djokovic, but he says he’s recovered ahead of Australia’s United Cup clash against Argentina in Sydney on Saturday.

A hip injury forced Alex de Minaur to withdraw from Wimbledon. Picture: Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

“I’m feeling great,” he said.

“It was a tough year dealing with that, so I’m glad that I can finally put it on the backburner and forget about it.

“I’ve felt very good in this off-season and this pre-season. We’ve put in a lot of work and the body is feeling very comfortable.

“I’ve done my best (over the break) to relish my achievements this year. There have been a lot of highs and lows dealing with injuries at the same time.

“More than anything, it’s given me a lot of hunger and fuel to drive for bigger and better things. This whole pre-season I’ve been motivated because I want more and I want to strive for bigger and better things.”

De Minaur may not be the tallest man on tour but he proved he has the ability to match it with the best players in the world in 2024, with the Aussie ace looking to now push himself even further.

“I definitely have plenty of goals in my head, but I’m not one to voice them out loud too often,” he teased.

“Ultimately, I want to keep pushing myself. I’ve had my best year to date, but at the same time, I’m not satisfied with that. I want more.

“I want to keep pushing myself, I want to one day finish my career knowing that I gave the absolute max and everything I could do to be the best possible tennis player.”

De Minaur started his 2024 campaign with some big wins at the United Cup, including a shock result over Novak Djokovic. Picture: Colin Murty / AFP

After three-straight fourth round finishes at his home slam, de Minaur will be looking to go deeper into the second week in Melbourne next month.

And the United Cup provides the perfect opportunity for him to build into the new season after he made an early statement 12 months ago with eye-catching wins over top stars Taylor Fritz, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev.

“It was extremely important for my confidence and for using it as a springboard to take my game to a new level and cracking the top 10,” he said ahead of Saturday’s showdown with Tomás Martín Etcheverry.

“A lot of those milestones were really important for me, and I think I was able to use the confidence that I gathered in the first week and basically have my best year to date so it was a very important week for me.

“It’s great coming in at the start of the year and tuning in from the start. I’ve been blessed to play some of the best players in the world at the start of the year so it’s the perfect way to get ready for the Australian Open and see where your level’s at.”