De Minaur closes in on the Masters in Vienna

While Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud, Grigor Dimitrov and Tommy Paul all missed out, and were all eliminated prematurely, Alex De Minaur proved solid enough to reach the semi-finals in Vienna.

In a race that remains as hotly contested as ever for the year-end Masters, this Vienna tournament could be the turning point.

As a reminder, Novak Djokovic has already announced his withdrawal, meaning that the player ranked 9th at the Race will obtain the 8th sesame and reach Turin.

After a courageous victory over an excellent Jakub Mensik (6-7, 6-3, 6-4 in 2h35), the Australian has not only reached the semi-finals, but has also built up a highly desirable lead in the rankings.

Indeed, with this result, De Minaur consolidates his 9th place with 3555 points, leaving his two main pursuers some 400 points behind (Dimitrov is 10th with 3160 pts and Paul is 11th with 3145 pts).

This Saturday, he will attempt to reach another final this season after those played in Rotterdam, Acapulco and Bois-le-Duc (2 titles and one defeat).

To do so, he'll need to tame a resurgent Karen Khachanov, who has just won 7 consecutive matches.

An opportunity to move a step closer to the Masters!