De Minaur thrashes Belgian with world no.4 looming, Millman loses at first hurdle

Kieran Francis

De Minaur thrashes Belgian with world no.4 looming, Millman loses at first hurdle image

Alex De Minaur is on the path to a quarter-final showdown with world no.4 Stefanos Tsitsipas after defeating Belgium's David Goffin in the first round of the ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam.

The 22-year-old world no.34 had no troubles dispatching his 47th-ranked opponent 6-0 6-3 in 73 minutes on Tuesday morning (AEDT) in the ATP 500 event.

De Minaur will now meet USA's Mackenzie McDonald in the round-of-16, with the winner likely to take on number one seed Tsitsipas in the quarter-finals.

"I think I played really well," De Minaur said post-match.

"I played exactly how I wanted to. My coach and I set up a plan about how we wanted to play this match and I managed to execute it. It is a very good feeling.

"Mentally I thought I was very solid and positive and that is one of the main aspects I am trying to focus on this year."

Fellow Australian Alexei Popyrin will also be in action in the first round, as he takes on Russia's Karen Khachanov.

Along with Tsitsipas, the Rotterdam event features the likes of Andrey Rublev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Denis Shapovalov and Aslan Karatsev.

At the inaugural ATP 250 Dallas Open, Australia's John Millman was eliminated in the first round by eighth-seeded American Brandon Nakashima 7-5 7-6(3).

Another Aussie, Jordan Thompson, will be in action on day two in Texas against Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez.

On the WTA side, there are no Australian women competing in singles at the St. Petersburg Open in Russia.

Kieran Francis

Kieran Francis Photo

Kieran Francis is a senior editor at The Sporting News based in Melbourne, Australia. He started at Sportal.com.au before being a part of the transition to Sporting News in 2015. Just prior to the 2018 World Cup, he was appointed chief editor of Goal.com in Australia. He has now returned to The Sporting News where his passions lay in football, AFL, poker and cricket - when he is not on holiday.