Every year in a house a few minutes’ walk from Wimbledon, the greats of Australian tennis gather for the “Aussie Barbecue”, a celebration of some of the true legends of the sport. This year, Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall were honoured, while the likes of Lleyton Hewitt and Sam Stosur were among those who chatted away and listened to stories of some of their incredible exploits.
Alex de Minaur was not among them, the 25-year-old focusing on his third-round match the following day. While De Minaur eventually received a walkover into the next round, it was a sensible choice from one of the most dedicated, hard-working players on the tour who has been enjoying the best 12 months of his career. On Wednesday, the Australian No 1 has the chance to put his name alongside some of those legends, if – and it’s a big if – he can beat the seven-time champion Novak Djokovic.
