Novak Djokovic was almost brought to tears discussing his family after demolition Alex de Minaur in their fourth round clash at the Australian Open on Monday night.
The nine-time champion surged into a 13th Melbourne Park quarter-final after brushing aside his much publicised hamstring injury concerns in a 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 win that described as his “best day so far” at the Australian Open.
The Serb destroyed Australia’s last big hope in the men’s singles with a clinical performance on Rod Laver Arena to move a step closer to a 10th Australian title and a 22nd major crown that would equal great rival Rafa Nadal’s all-time record.
With his left thigh again strapped, the 35-year-old was a man on a mission, expending as little energy as possible in a ruthless display lasting just over two hours.
Djokovic aggravated his hamstring during his run to a 92nd title at the Adelaide International earlier in January and has been struggling with it since. But he moved freely against De Minaur to set up a clash with fifth seed Andrey Rublev for a semi-final berth after the Russian toppled Danish teen Holger Rune in a tense five-set epic on the same court.
