Jannik Sinner runs hot ahead of possible de Minaur quarter-final

A potential quarter-final opponent for Alex de Minaur is in ominous touch after destroying his seeded opponent in the third round.

Jannik Sinner is the biggest threat in Alex de Minaur’s quarter of the draw after winning three matches in straight sets to begin the Australian Open. Picture: Darrian Traynor / Getty Images

For Alex de Minaur to reach his first grand slam semi-final he will almost certainly need to find a way to curtail a rampant Jannik Sinner after he blasted past his seeded opponent on Friday.

The Italian world No. 4 made a powerful statement as he dominated 28th seed Sebastian Baez 6-0, 6-1, 6-3 to be one more win away from a potential quarter-final showdown with de Minaur.

The Australian star claimed a procession of top 10 scalps to begin the year but has lost all six of his past meetings with Sinner, most recently a 6-3, 6-0 thrashing as Italy beat Australia in the Davis Cup final last November.

Sinner will first need to beat Russian 15th seed Karen Khachanov, but he said he was high on confidence after “finding his rhythm” in his second-round clash on Wednesday.

Alex de Minaur (left) has never beaten Jannik Sinner in six attempts including the National Bank Open in Toronto last August (pictured). Picture: Vaughn Ridley / Getty Images

The 22-year-old did not play a lead-in tournament and has fresh legs after two exhibition matches at the Kooyong Classic and three swift matches without dropping a set at Melbourne Park.

“I felt great – I made the right decisions and I used every chance I had today, maybe the first match I was struggling a bit but it’s good to have this match feeling again,” Sinner told reporters after his win on Friday.

“I’m very excited to step on the court every time … I think everything is going in the right way.

“Let’s see how I handle the situation when the score is even or I’m down, how I react – that’s going to be interesting to see.”

Sinner rose to No. 4 in the world last year after enlisting the help of seasoned Australian tennis coach Darren Cahill alongside his existing Italian coach. Picture: Darrian Traynor / Getty Images

Sinner reached his career high world ranking in 2023 after joining forces with Australian coach Darren Cahill, who has previously guided Lleyton Hewitt, Andre Agassi and Simona Halep to No. 1.

He also retained his existing coach, former Italian player Simone Vagnozzi, and said the duo’s ability to work together had been behind his significant strides last year.

Cahill and Vagnozzi were both recognised with the ATP Coach of the Year award in December.

“I think the tactical, technical part is more for Simone – the emotional part, talking in the right way, giving confidence not only to me but to the team, that is Darren’s job,” Sinner said.

“They have a lot of respect for each other, nobody wants to go over (the other) one, so they are always in the same line – that’s one key thing I have in my team.

“Simone gives me stability, he knows me better in one way, so both of them give me something positive obviously … they believe in me and I believe in them.”