‘It’s been an amazing week’: De Minaur wins back-to-back Acapulco titles

Alex de Minaur is poised for an extended stay inside the world’s top 10 after defending his Acapulco title on Sunday with a straight-sets defeat of triple grand slam runner-up Casper Ruud.

Ruud departs Mexico back inside the top 10 himself, but will be sick of Australians after also losing last week’s Los Cabos final to first-time winner Jordan Thompson.

Alex de Minaur lifted the trophy in Acapulco for the second-straight year.

De Minaur had to win the tournament to retain his top-10 status, and produced his best tennis of the week to down Ruud 6-4, 6-4 in a near-two-hour hardcourt battle that showcased how much of a force he has become.

The 25-year-old’s back-to-back Acapulco titles are his only ones at ATP 500 level – behind just the slams and Masters in prestige – but he is featuring in them at an increasing rate, including the Rotterdam final against Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner a fortnight ago.

De Minaur is the fourth player to win consecutive titles in the Mexican city, joining David Ferrer, Nicolas Almagro and Thomas Muster, and has moved to third in the ATP Race to Turin, where the end-of-year tour finals will be played.

“It’s been an amazing week, [and] probably a week I didn’t really expect, if I’m honest,” de Minaur said.

“I came into Mexico not feeling my best, and just kept on telling myself to keep putting myself out there, keep giving myself chances, and I think today, by far, I played my best match of the tournament, so [I am] extremely happy with that.

“Acapulco has been a very good place to me for my tennis career. [It was the] first time I won a 500, and first time I’ve defended a title in my career. I feel at home here, and it’s a great place to be.”

De Minaur will board a 6am flight to Tijuana before heading to San Diego in time to watch his British girlfriend, Katie Boulter, face off against Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk in the WTA 500 final there.

The scoreboard did not do justice to how brilliantly de Minaur started the match, or how much he largely controlled an opening set where he flayed 13 winners to the Norwegian’s four. The final tally was 28-8.

De Minaur retained his top-10 ranking with his Acapulco triumph.

But the Sydneysider had to rally from 0-2 down in the second set during a mid-match lull that coincided with the bigger-striking Ruud beginning to do damage on his forehand.

De Minaur, who thrives on hugging the baseline against the tour titans, briefly retreated as that onslaught took place – and had to dig deep on serve, even after grabbing the break immediately back. It was a major contrast to the first set, where he conceded only five service points across four games.

However, de Minaur rose to the occasion, as he does so often these days, just as Ruud sniffed the chance of a deciding set.

After a brain fade where the Australian left a volley that landed half a metre in, he recovered in the same game to break Ruud with some superb counter-punching, secured with an inside-out forehand that he crunched for a winner.

Ruud’s torrid night in Acapulco was summed up two games later, when he poked a forehand long after de Minaur exceptionally hung in the point while sprinting from side to side and throwing up several defensive lobs.

The Norwegian held on from 15-30 to force de Minaur to serve the match out, which he had no problem doing.

De Minaur has only 255 points to defend between now and the grasscourt season in June, with the upcoming Sunshine Double – the Indian Wells and Miami Masters – presenting a wonderful opportunity for him after he lost in the second round at both last year.

De Minaur will return to the United States with sky-high confidence, having not only captured his first title of the year but ending a 10-match drought against Greek nemesis Stefanos Tsitsipas in the process.

The world No.9’s animated reaction to that quarter-final triumph over Tsitsipas demonstrated how much it meant to him, before he outlasted emerging Brit Jack Draper in a second-straight three-setter in his semi-final.

De Minaur joked after the Tsitsipas win that “no one beats me 11 times in a row”, another snappy one-liner that sits alongside what he said after toppling Daniil Medvedev at the Paris Masters in late 2022 for his maiden top-five scalp, which was a long time coming: “Why do it in the first 18?”

He has added five such victories since, to highlight his legitimacy at the top of the sport.

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Key points

Alex de Minaur won the ATP 500 Acapulco title for the second year in a row.

The world No.9 had to win the final over Casper Ruud to retain his top-10 ranking.

De Minaur will be on a 6am flight to make it in time to watch his girlfriend Katie Boulter’s final.