Another scintillating performance has helped Alex de Minaur advance to the Rotterdam Open semi-finals in a tournament where he hopes to go one better than last year.
The 25-year-old reached the final of the ATP 500 event 12 months ago, falling in straight sets against world No.1 Jannik Sinner.
But after dominating 'Lucky Loser' Daniel Altmaier 6-1 6-4 overnight, de Minaur's title chances have been boosted due to Stefanos Tsitsipas' shock exit, meaning he is two wins away from becoming the first Australian since Lleyton Hewitt in 2004 to win the Rotterdam title.
De Minaur extended his record against players outside the top-30 to 29-1 in his past 30 matches, who is also tied with Sinner for the most ATP 500 wins since 2023 (32).
Australia's No.1 ranked player will face Italian qualifier Mattia Bellucci, who defeated Daniil Medvedev in three sets before sweeping Tsitsipas 6-4 6-2.
"He's having his breakout tournament," de Minaur said of Bellucci ahead of their semi-final.
"Beating Medvedev is a very, very tough task on any court, and he's playing with a lot of confidence."
De Minaur's head-to-head with Tsitsipas would no doubt provide a sigh of relief for the Sydneysider, having suffered 11 losses in 12 meetings.
A win against Bellucci will ensure he leapfrogs Novak Djokovic to No.6 in the live ATP rankings, which would secure his equal career-high achieved in July last year.
It could also set up a potential showdown with four-time major winner Carlos Alcaraz in the decider.
De Minaur and Bellucci begin their clash on Sunday at 1:30am AEDT, streamed live on Bein Sports and TennisTV.
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