Australia’s Alex de Minaur is fast charming the Parisian locals with his charge to the lofty heights of the Roland-Garros quarter-finals. The 25-year-old, now a two-time major quarter-finalist , won countless admirers by competently answering questions in French before a worldwide audience on centre court after his eye-catching four-set win over former world No.1 and top 10 fixture Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round.
But before that landmark victory in the early hours on Tuesday morning (AEST), de Minaur had already captured the heart of at least one devoted French tennis fan. Paul, 14, has been a “lucky charm” for de Minaur, offering strong vocal support from the stands as the Australian reached the final eight on the famous French clay for the first time. The teenager was first noticed by de Minaur after his rain-affected win over Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff over the weekend.
Alex de Minaur’s super fan, 14-year-old Paul. Credit: Stan Sport “I don’t understand what this kid is doing, but, oh, he gave me life,” de Minaur told reporters in Paris after beating Struff . “Every single change of ends I’m looking at him, locking eyes with him.
“And at the end I just gave him a hug. “It was amazing. I appreciate this kid, the fact that he’s spent 10 hours at the court today in the freezing cold pumping me up.
I was happy that I was able to get a win together with him.” De Minaur and his entourage became determined to track down the young fan, turning to.
