Alex de Minaur has described his Laver Cup victory over Alexander Zverev as ‘special’ after claiming his fourth win over the German.
Team Europe looked set to add another two points to their lead over Team World when Zverev served for the match at 6-2, 5-3, but the Australian refused to give in.
De Minaur saved a match point on the German’s serve in the third-set 10-point tiebreak before a backhand from Zverev caught the outside of the sideline, handing de Minaur a memorable comeback victory.
The Australian had been under pressure throughout the match, particularly after losing the opening set, but managed to turn the contest around by staying aggressive and making the German work for every point on a slow court.
Zverev had been on a nine-match winning streak after winning the US Open title, as well as both of his Davis Cup group matches against Croatia.
The defeat takes his overall record against players ranked inside the world’s top 10 in 2026 to a disappointing 2-8.
De Minaur has also struggled against top-10 opponents, having gone without a victory over a player in the top 10 in 2025 before claiming just one in 2026, against Felix Auger-Aliassime in Rotterdam.
The result was particularly significant for Team World, who entered the second day at the Laver Cup trailing 3-1 after the opening four matches.
Learner Tien had already levelled the overall score by defeating Flavio Cobolli before de Minaur completed the turnaround.
More Tennis News
“Wow. What a day! Only halfway through it, pretty good start for Team World, but what a place to play some tennis. This is special; thank you, guys. Let’s have ourselves a little day, huh?,” he stated during his post-match interview.
“If you can notice, my blood is red as well. A very tough match, a tough battle. I left it all out there, fortunate in the end to get the job done, and happy to get some points for Team World.
“Just stay in there, right? Keep asking questions, give yourself a chance; you never know. If you put the ball in the court, you might get lucky, and that’s what I did today,”
The Australian’s victory moves Team World ahead of Team Europe, with two matches to go on day two of the Laver Cup.
The match was worth two points for Team World, meaning they now lead 5-3 heading into the remaining matches on Saturday.
Each victory on day three is worth three points, so it is all to play for both teams, with Team World having claimed the title last year.
“We were in this same position last year, and it worked out pretty well for us,” he added.
“We know we can do some damage; we know we’re the underdogs, but we also know we can step out on this court and light it up, so happy days, onto the next one, and let’s see if we can keep it going.”
