Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Alex de Minaur has been given an unexpected but welcome free pass into the last-32 of the French Open because of an injury to his dangerous second-round opponent.
The Australian No.1 will not be unhappy about being able to bypass the round in which he suffered a shock defeat to Alexander Bublik last year, after Belgium’s rising star Alexander Blockx had to withdraw on Monday with a right ankle sprain.
The 21-year-old Blockx, who’s shot up to No.37 in the world and reached the semi-final in Madrid last month while defeating Casper Ruud and Felix Auger-Aliassime en route, had represented a serious hurdle with the pair scheduled to clash first up on Tuesday on Roland Garros’s second arena, Court Suzanne Lenglen
But the youngster was left crestfallen while practising on Monday when he turned his ankle in a training session.
It gives de Minaur a break from a potentially draining affair in the soaring temperatures against an opponent who gave him plenty of trouble when they met in the last-16 at Monte Carlo last month, with de Minaur prevailing 7-5 7-6 (7-4).
“He’s one of the young talents, playing some really good tennis,” de Minaur had noted about Blockx after his first-round win over Briton Toby Samuel.
“We had a battle in Monaco, and before that he beat some quality players. He backed it up week after week. He’s a big kid, big serve, big forehand, dangerous player.
“It’s going to be a battle in this heat, and my goal is going to be to make it physical, extend the rallies.”
Now, though, the walkover will provide a rest before a demanding third-round contest for ‘Demon’ on Thursday against either No.26 seed Jakub Mensik, another rising star from the Czech Republic, or the in-form Argentine Mariano Navone, a finalist in Geneva last week.
Two other Australian men will be in second-round action tomorrow, with the veteran James Duckworth taking on the latest Spanish teenage sensation, Rafael Jodar, and Thanasi Kokkinakis hoping to have recovered from his five-set opening win when he dukes it out with 34-year-old Spanish grinder Pablo Carreno Busta.
AUSTRALIANS IN ACTION ON DAY 4 AT THE FRENCH OPEN (number denotes seeding)
Men’s singles second round
James Duckworth v 27-Rafael Jodar (ESP)
Thanasi Kokkinakis v Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP)
