Alex de Minaur aims to use his recent participation in two team events as a ‘springboard’ for the rest of the year.

The world No. 10 recently featured in the Davis Cup, where he won both of his matches during Australia’s 3-1 win over Poland in World Group 1. Then, at the Laver Cup, he stunned Alexander Zverev in a tightly contested three-set match, winning 11-9 in the deciding tiebreak. He also played doubles with Taylor Fritz, losing to Jakub Mensik and Flavio Cobolli.

“I think the Davis Cup and Laver Cup came at a perfect time for me. It was exactly what I kind of needed after New York,” De Minaur said after beating Mariano Novone 7-6(4), 6-2, at the China Open on Thursday.

“I went very early to Brisbane. I was able to get stuck in, do some great practice with the Davis Cup team, and feel that kind of team chemistry.

“Being in a team environment brought my energy up. It was a whole lot of fun. I thought it brought out some great tennis in me.

“A little bit like last year, these two events, I’ve really used them to springboard the end of my season. That’s been the plan so far. Yeah, so far so good.”

From a more sceptical perspective, some might question de Minaur’s decision to play so much in a short time span. This month, he has already travelled from New York to Brisbane, then London, and now Beijing.

“I’ve been getting some serious frequent flyer miles,” he jokes.

“I looked at last year, and yes, it was a lot, but I finished the year really well. It was key for me. “I’m hoping that I can do the same, play a lot of matches. There are worse problems to have in the world.”

De Minaur is the fifth seed at the China Open, where he is seeking his second title of the year after the Rotterdam in February. After beating Navone, he has now won 62 matches at ATP 500 events since the start of 2023, which is more than any other player.

This time of year is crucial for those hoping to seal a place in the ATP Finals, which features the eight highest-ranked players over 12 months. De Minaur is currently 11th in the standings and is just over 600 points adrift from eighth position.

“The way I look at it is if I have good results, then I’ll be in the conversation. If not, then I won’t. It’s as simple as that. It’s a little bit up to me,” he said.

“But I’m not looking at the numbers every day, what needs to happen. I know that if I can have good results, then I’m going to have a good chance. So that’s what I’m trying to do: focus on myself.”

In the next round at the China Open, de Minaur will play France’s Quentin Halys.