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Alex De Minaur vs Rafael Nadal: Wimbledon live scores, blog

7th July, 2018
Start time: 10pm (AEST)
Court: Centre
TV: Live, Fox Sports, 7
Online: Live, Foxtel app, Foxtel now, Plus7
Betting: Nadal $1.10, De Minaur $8
Overall record: Never played
Alex de Minaur ( AAP Image/Darren England)
Expert
7th July, 2018
175

Four years on from another Aussie knocking Rafael Nadal out of Wimbledon, Alex De Minaur will look to do it again in what will be the biggest match of his career to date. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 10pm (AEST).

In what was another World Cup year, the then 19-year-old Nick Kyrgios took to the centre court of Wimbledon and ousted Rafael Nadal in four stunning sets.

The similarities between the two start and end there though. Where Kyrgios had the attacking weapons even at such a young age to go flying past Nadal, it’s hard to say De Minaur has the same.

De Minaur has played some big matches this year, including a five-set epic during the Davis Cup against Alexander Zverev in Brisbane, but he has built all of that on defence. On being able to scrap and grind his way through matches and come out the other side unscathed.

While Nadal is somewhat similar in his approach, he adapts enough on the grass to play the attacking game and put his opponent under pressure. He is the world No.1 and a former Wimbledon champion for a reason after all.

To win this match though, De Minaur will need to be aggressive from the outset. He is one of the fastest players on tour and needs to use that to his advantage, covering the court, getting into the net where possible and trying to put the World No.1 under pressure.

Holding serve early in sets and being able to stay in the Nadal service game will also be crucial.

It’s not out of the question he will do that either, given the form line has a tournament victory, another final and two four-set wins over good players in Marco Cecchinato and Pierre-Hugues Herbert to start at The Championships.

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Nadal, on the other hand, had no lead-up to Wimbledon, taking an extended break after the French Open.

He has come away with a pair of straight-sets wins from his first two encounters though, blasting past Dudi Sela and Mikhail Kukushkin.

Prediction
De Minaur willl be able to go with Nadal at times. His fight, determination and high tennis IQ might even win him a set, but not the match. In saying that, this won’t be the last time we see the young Aussie on centre court in London.

Nadal in four sets.

Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of this match from 10pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.

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