Alex de Minaur suffered a shock straight-sets exit at the US Open, falling in the second round to Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp 6-4, 7-5, 6-2 in two hours and 43 minutes. The defeat marks the Australian world number seven’s earliest Flushing Meadows exit in five years, at a grand slam where he has three times reached the quarterfinals.
Australia’s world number seven entered the second-round clash at Flushing Meadows holding a comfortable 4-0 career head-to-head record against Botic van de Zandschulp, including earlier this year at the Rotterdam ATP event, which the 27-year-old Aussie won. That advantage dissolved under a barrage of unforced errors and a sub-par serving display as the tournament sixth seed exited the grand slam in straight sets, leaving himself far too much to do.
De Minaur was forced to wait until day four to get his tournament underway after rain caused the postponement of his round one clash with Italian qualifier Andrea Guerrieri. But on a night at The Grandstand where he committed 29 unforced errors to van de Zandschulp’s 21, as well as seven double faults, things quickly unraveled. He racked up 30 unforced errors compared to just 23 winners, dropped his serve five times, and only broke his 70th-ranked opponent once. Despite saving three match points in the final game, it was not enough.
Following a brief pause where he stood on court in contemplation at his exit, de Minaur exited without looking back. Presenting a brave face after, the 27-year-old addressed reporters in New York.
My level today wasn’t good enough. It’s pretty straightforward,
de Minaur said. “I gave myself every chance by being competitive, having a good mindset, a good attitude, but it was just one of those days where just the feeling of the ball on the strings wasn’t there. I was making a lot of errors, which is not really my normal game style. I can’t really explain the reasoning of it, but just it felt like the more I tried, the more intensity, the more fired up I was getting, I just kept on making unforced errors. When those sort of things happen and the odd chance that you have, he comes out with some good tennis – it’s just a recipe for a tough day at the office.”
With Novak Djokovic and Félix Auger-Aliassime both crashing out early, and his Italian nemesis Jannik Sinner—who holds a 13-from-13 record over the Australian—missing with a knee injury, alongside defending champion Carlos Alcaraz playing his first tournament in four months, de Minaur had been the fourth-highest seed left in the tournament. But the sixth seed was unable to make that opportunity count.
Reflecting on the loss, which contrasted with how disconsolate he was following his Wimbledon quarter-final loss to Flavio Cobolli in July, de Minaur was able to shake off the result more easily. “No, I’m good,” he said. “Obviously would have loved to do better, as any competitor would, but it’s what happens in this sort of sport. Everyone loses matches. Everyone is losing matches that maybe they would love to have back. I’ve had some incredible moments on the tennis court and there’s been some days where I’ve been a shadow of myself and I’ve struggled to make the court. What I’ve been fortunate in my career is that there hasn’t been too many of those days. So, all in all, it’s one I would love to have back, but we move forward and it’s not the end of the world.”
For van de Zandschulp, knocking out high-seeded players at Flushing Meadows has become a recurring theme. The 30-year-old world number 70 previously beat Casper Ruud on his way to the quarterfinals in 2021 and, in 2024, knocked out third-seed Carlos Alcaraz in the second round with a straight-sets win. Furthermore, the victory is van de Zandschulp’s second over a top-10 player during this US hardcourt swing after he beat world number eight Daniil Medvedev at the Montreal Masters in August.
I always had really difficult matches against Alex,
van de Zandschulp said on court. Some tough ones as well, some close matches, but today I served very well, I think that was the difference today.
Dane Sweeny Reaches Last 32 at US Open
With de Minaur’s surprise departure and earlier losses by compatriots Tristan Schoolkate, Alexi Popyrin, James Duckworth, Maya Joint, and Kimberly Birrell in their second-round matches, little-known wildcard Dane Sweeny remains the last Australian player standing in the singles draws at Flushing Meadows. Sweeny posted the biggest win of his career by upsetting 14th-ranked Italian Lorenzo Musetti 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 to make the US Open’s last 32.
Luciano Darderi Faces Dane Sweeny
World number 123 Sweeny next plays 21st seed Luciano Darderi on Saturday (Sunday AEST) for a most improbable spot in the last 16 ahead of a potential fourth round match-up with world number two and top seed Alexander Zverev, while de Minaur concludes a 2026 season where his best major result remains a quarterfinal appearance at the Australian Open back in January.
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