Alex De Minaur’s Wimbledon run comes to an end, falling to seven-time champion Novak Djokovic in a thrilling four-set contest.
London, UK, 8 July 2025 | AAP & Tennis Australia
For a heady half-hour Alex de Minaur was in dreamland, for three hours he was in contention, but ultimately he was unable to achieve what would have been one of the biggest wins of his career and knock over Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon.
De Minaur won the first set 6-1, stunning Djokovic, the Centre Court crowd, and millions watching on television.
But Djokovic was not going to let his own dream of winning a record 25th Grand Slam slide away. He refocused and came back to defeat de Minaur 1-6 6-4 6-4 6-4 in three hours and 19 minutes to reach his 16th Wimbledon quarterfinal.
Earlier on Day 8, Australia’s Olivia Gadecki progressed to her maiden women’s doubles Grand Slam quarterfinal alongside American Desirae Krawczyk.
It was, however, at the expense of all-Aussie duo Maya Joint and Kimberly Birrell; Gadecki and Krawczyk proved too strong with a 6-3 6-4 victory.
In junior singles, world No.1 Emerson Jones celebrated her 17th birthday in style with a 6-2 6-1 triumph over Yoana Konstantinova, while fellow Australian Tahlia Kokkinis continued her dream Wimbledon debut, also winning in straight sets against local hopeful Daniella Britton.
Djokovic later reflected on his fourth-round battle with De Minaur, one defined by “challenging moments”.
“I didn’t have many solutions in the first set,” he said. “It was a tough game to close out the second set, I felt that was a momentum shift.”
It was, but as late as midway through the fourth set De Minaur had a break and looked set to force a fifth only for Djokovic to up a gear and ruthlessly finish off the 11th seed.
De Minaur had been waiting a year for this match, having been forced to withdraw from a quarterfinal date with Djokovic last year due to the hip injury that dogged him through the back half of last year.
The 26-year-old had beaten Djokovic at Perth in the United Cup in the interim, but to do so at Wimbledon, where the Serb has won seven times, would be something else entirely.
But while he is a champion, he is an aging one: the 38-year-old was bidding to become the third oldest Wimbledon quarterfinalist after Ken Rosewall in 1974 and Roger Federer in 2021.
The latter was watching from the Royal Box, along with England Ashes veterans Joe Root and James Anderson, and must have been astonished by what he was watching as De Minaur swept the first set.
Djokovic double-faulted on the very first point of the match and while he followed that with an ace down the centre, the tone had been set.
Troubled by a gusting wind the Serb continued to struggle with his serve. He dished up four double faults in the set, landed fewer than half his first serves and won the point on only 18 per cent of his second serves.
But that was to give insufficient credit to De Minaur. His first serve accuracy was even worse but there were no double faults and he backed his second serve to the extent he won 75 per cent of points on it.
His trademark scurrying seemed even more effective than usual, covering the grass with extraordinary speed but arriving at the ball with the composure and poise to deliver some superb passing shots and drop volleys.
While the first set was a mind-blowing walkover what followed was a lot more competitive. The sun came out, the wind dropped, and Djokovic found his rhythm.
But De Minaur was equal to the challenge. Djokovic claimed the second set but it took him more than an hour as the pair traded breaks of serve and he had to save a break point when serving for the set.
The third stanza was studded with magnificent shots from both, with each applauding the other. But Djokovic secured the first break, in the ninth game, and served out.
The Australian would not go quietly, snagging an early break to race into a 3-0 lead in the fourth set. But at 4-1 he failed to take a break point and that proved crucial.
The end came quickly as Djokovic broke, and broke again.
De Minaur was warmly cheered as he left court, with Djokovic leading the applause.
AUSSIES IN ACTION: WIMBLEDON
DAY 8 RESULTS
Gentlemen’s singles, fourth round
[6] Novak Djokovic (SRB) d [11] Alex de Minaur (AUS) 1-6 6-4 6-4 6-4
Ladies’ doubles, third round
[10] Timea Babos (HUN)/Luisa Stefani (BRA) d [7] Ellen Perez (AUS)/Lyudmyla Kichenok (UKR) 7-5 6-4
Olivia Gadecki (AUS)/Desirae Krawczyk (USA) d Kimberly Birrell (AUS)/Maya Joint (AUS) 6-3 6-4
Girls’ singles, second round
[1] Emerson Jones (AUS) d Yoana Konstantinova (BUL) 6-2 6-1
Tahlia Kokkinis (AUS) d [WC] Daniella Britton (GBR) 6-3 7-6(2)
Boys’ doubles, first round
Cruz Hewitt (AUS)/Mark Ceban (GBR) d Haydar Cem Gokpinar (TUR)/Kerem Yilmaz (TUR) 6-0 6-2
Find your way to play: Visit play.tennis.com.au to hit the court and have some fun!
