- Alex de Minaur has been warned not to ‘p***’ Novak Djokovic
- Djokovic launched an astonishing tirade against the crowd on Centre Court
- Mark Philippoussis has given the Aussie a warning
Wimbledon favourite Mark Philippoussis believes Alex de Minaur can cause an upset by beating Novak Djokovic in his first quarter-final on Centre Court, but he laughs that it might not be the best idea to upset the seven-time champion.
Australian tennis greats were optimistic about the ‘Demon’s’ chances of beating the seven-time champion on Wednesday, but all agreed with former Wimbledon doubles champion Todd Woodbridge’s assessment that the Sydney native will have to pay for “the match of his life”.
Speaking ahead of the invitational Legends Doubles at SW19, 2003 finalist Philippoussis said: ‘Of course he (de Minaur) can beat Djokovic. He has the game and the mentality to play against anyone.
‘He’s doing everything he has to do, he’s in the top 10 in the world, he’s playing with confidence, he’s playing some of the best tennis of his career, he’s already won a grass court tournament this season and he keeps putting pressure on the top players.
‘We know he’s got grit and he’s fast on the pitch, but the good news is he’s become more aggressive, and I think that’s played a big part in his top 10 career. He should have been.’
But Philippoussis, now 47, could not suppress a smile as he watched Djokovic angrily attack the Dane’s fans after his victory over Holger Rune in the round of 16 on Monday, saying they were disrespecting him with their chants.
“I kind of saw what happened. I saw him do something, and I thought, ‘Okay, something’s happening, someone pissed him off — that’s a bad idea. You don’t want to piss Novak off!’
“I think he wants to hear ‘boo’, honestly, because it makes him play better. If I were playing him, I’d just compliment him on switching sides. I don’t want to upset the guy, that’s for sure!
Alex de Minaur (left) has been warned for ‘p***ing’ Novak Djokovic
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“That mentality, even towards certain parts of the audience, to be honest, I love seeing that. That’s the whole part of what he brings.
“It’s just something he uses to his advantage. I’m not saying he should, but sometimes you can just see in his eyes, when he gets focused and agitated for something, he goes to another level mentally. He just clicks into it and uses that to play better.
“His confidence is growing with every game. His confidence has also grown with his knee (which had to be operated on a month ago).
“If you want to win a Grand Slam tournament, you have to play against the best players in the world and beat them. And this player is that.”
Like the rest of the Australian tennis world, Philippoussis was shocked to see de Minaur’s subdued celebrations. He had suffered a hip injury while trying to score his winning point against Frenchman Arthur Fils with a winning volley.
“It’s not the celebration you would expect when you get to the quarter-finals, but I know it’s normal in the second week of Wimbledon to have muscle pain,” said the player with the best serve.