'Weird stage': Alex de Minaur contemplates break from tennis after French Open demise
Updated . First published
With a golden opportunity to advance past the final eight for the first time in Paris, Alex de Minaur crashed out of the French Open to Jakub Mensik in four sets.
With Jannik Sinner's unexpected exit and Novak Djokovic's shock elimination, de Minaur blew a chance to make a serious run, dominated by young Czech powerhouse 0-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 in the third round.
Most thought the Australian would get past the the 20-year-old, who had collapsed on court and had to be taken to the medical centre in a wheelchair after his four-hour 41-minute win over Mariano Navone just two days earlier.
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But Mensik bounced back after falling a set behind in hot and sticky conditions at Roland Garros as de Minaur seemed fresher with only one three-set match all week following his second-round walkover.
Yet things shift dramatically in the second set, with de Minaur losing his focus and Mensik growing in confidence.
De Minaur acknowledged the opportunity he let slip with the best players in the world absent.
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Alex De Minaur bowed out in four sets. AP Photo/Christophe Ena
"I feel like you only get so many opportunities in your career and you've got to be ready to take them, and when you don't take them, it's gut wrenching, right, especially a day like today (where) I was in the driver's seat," de Minaur said.
"Things were feeling well. I was hitting the ball well. Physically (I was) fine. I'm going to have to find a way to do as I did last year, but it's back-to-back years where I have kind of had a pretty disappointing ... tournament here at the French Open.
"I guess the good thing is I've got the grass coming up, which is a part of the year which I always really enjoy. I'm hoping that I can kind of get back to where I should be and the type of player I should be whenever I step out on court.
De Minaur congratulates Mensik. Nine
"That's going to be the goal. But first I need to forget about today somehow."
The world No.8 said he may entertain a mini-break before the grass season after a slump leading into the French Open.
He lost three straight matches in Barcelona, Madrid and Rome, before making a run in Hamburg leading into Roland Garros.
"I'm in a weird stage at the moment where I have put in a lot and... recently I haven't felt like I've gotten a lot back," he said.
"So (I'm) trying to find that balance of whether it's again you just put your head down (and) get back to work, (because) there is no other way forward than to go through it, right? That's kind of the mentality I have had my whole career.
"But I feel like it's been a long couple of years of that type of mentality. Maybe that's taking a little bit of a toll on me right now. I don't know. I really don't know what the solution is.
"(Is it) to go out and try to play matches and get my confidence back and get wins under the belt and just go that way? Or (is it) the opposite, to just say, 'Hey, let's forget about tennis for a little while.'
"Let's make sure I come back missing it and get back on the horse.
"I don't know. I'll have to talk to the team and kind of decide in the coming days."
