Australia are one win away from securing a spot in the revamped Davis Cup finals after a dominant opening day of their qualifying tie against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Adelaide.
Veteran John Millman gave Lleyton Hewitt’s side an ideal start with a 6-3 6-2 victory over Damir Dzumhur in the opening singles rubber.
De Minaur then doubled the hosts’ advantage with his first-ever Davis Cup victory in his fourth attempt, beating Mirza Basic in straight sets, 6-3 7-6 (0).
“This is a dream come true for me and I’m so happy I was finally able to get a win for my country in Davis Cup,” De Minaur said.
The strong opening day justifies Hewitt’s decision not to select Nick Kyrgios for the tie.
Australia will qualify for the 12-team finals to be hosted in Madrid in November under a controversial new format with one victory from the remaining three matches.
John Peers and Jordan Thompson are expected to face Basic and Tomislav Brkic in the doubles first up on Saturday.
Six teams have already automatically qualified for the finals, with the remaining six to be decided by 12 ties being contested this weekend.
