Alex de Minaur storms into Australian Open last-16 after straight sets victory over Benjamin Bonzi

Alex de Minaur insists he is ready for what’s next after switching gears in the second week of the Australian Open and setting up a potential fourth-round blockbuster with nine-time champion Novak Djokovic.

De Minaur dominated Benjamin Bonzi from the start and cruised to a 7-6 (7-0) 6-2 6-1 victory after breaking the Frenchman’s resistance in a first-set tiebreaker.

Dazzling the Rod Laver Arena crowd with his speed and energy, Australia’s number 22 seed broke Bonzi seven times during the two-hour, eight-minute mismatch to set the stage for a likely Monday night showdown with Djokovic.

Alex de Minaur advances to the round of 16 of the Australian Open after a comfortable victory

The Serbian superstar will play Grigor Dimitrov later on Saturday night, a heavy favorite to claim a 37th straight victory in Australia since his last loss against Hyeon Chung in the third round of the 2018 Open.

After pulling off a four-set second round victory over Adrian Mannarino, de Minaur looked like a man on a mission against Bonzi.

He hit 33 winners, racked up a total of 22 break points and closed out his final service game with his seventh and eighth aces in a clinical display.

The Sydney-born star defeated Benjamin Bonzi in straight sets to advance in Melbourne

“I’m very happy, I can’t lie,” de Minaur told the crowd at center court.

“Ultimately, if you want to go deep and really want to take it to the best players in the world, that’s the game plan.

‘I mean, you have to step it up. It’s no secret that against the best in the world you can’t just put the ball in the court and wait for them to miss because that’s just not going to happen.

De Minaur and Djokovic have yet to meet but if their success comes to fruition at Melbourne Park, the hometown hopeful will be brimming with confidence after beating dethroned champion Rafael Nadal for the first time in the season-opening United Cup in Sydney.

“These are the games you want to play,” de Minaur said.

He will face either Novak Djokovic or Grigor Dimitrov in the next round of the competition.

‘You don’t want a walkover in the final of a slam. You want to be playing against the best in the world.

That’s what I have. I will probably have the best in the world in front of me, and I am ready for battle.

“I want to take it to them and show what I’m made of on the biggest stages and just put myself to the test and really bring it to them.”

De Minaur has a 2-1 lead against Dimitrov, including a last-start win over the Bulgarian in Toronto in August, but he also knows how dangerous the former world number 3’s proposition can be.

“Grigor, he’s up there with one of the most talented players on tour,” he said.

‘Their top level is exceptional. He makes tennis look very, very easy.

‘If I play against Grigor, I have to know that he is going to play incredible tennis. I just have to be very strong mentally and try to stick to my game, try to be as solid as possible and take any little opportunity that I might get.”