Carlos Alcaraz crushed home hopes with victory over Alex de Minaur to reach the semi-finals of the Australian Open for the first time.
De Minaur was playing in his seventh grand slam quarter-final and second in a row at Melbourne Park, but the belief he could perhaps make it further for the first time evaporated as Alcaraz powered to a 7-5 6-2 6-1 victory.
The world number one had fallen on both his previous visits to the last eight, including to Novak Djokovic 12 months ago, but the same outcome never looked likely here, with Alcaraz now two victories away from becoming the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam.
There are still big hurdles ahead, with Alexander Zverev next, and quite probably his major rival Jannik Sinner in the final, but Alcaraz's progress so far is mightily impressive, with the Spaniard yet to drop a set.
"I’m just really happy with the way that I’m playing every match," said Alcaraz. "I was increasing my level every match, which I’m really happy about. After the first match my team told me to be patient. Today I felt really comfortable playing great tennis."
De Minaur, who had never beaten Alcaraz in five previous attempts, is at a career-high ranking of sixth and cannot be faulted for his attitude, with his determination to stay on the front foot and not be pushed behind the baseline by the bigger hitters evident here.
He troubled Alcaraz in the opening set, twice breaking the top seed’s serve, but both times he was coming from behind and the disappointment was clear on the Australian’s face when he failed to save a fourth set point in the 12th game.
The intense heat of the day had subsided enough to allow the roof to be open – although it was still 39C at the start – and a swirling breeze at times affected both men.
But Alcaraz was simply better, particularly on serve, and De Minaur was unable to land any meaningful blows after the opening set.
Vamos so good, we had to run the whole point here 😏😎@wwos @espn @tntsports @wowowtennis #AO26 pic.twitter.com/l3zY2kC4bQ
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 27, 2026
Learner Tien showcased what makes him such an exciting talent in his first grand slam quarter-final before falling to Zverev in four sets.
The 20-year-old American was bidding to become the youngest man to reach the last four in Melbourne for 34 years, but instead it was the third seed who moved through to a 10th slam semi-final after a 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-1 7-6 (7- 3) victory.
"Learner from the baseline was playing unbelievable," said an impressed Zverev. "I don't think I’ve played anyone who plays that well from the baseline for a very long time.
"I don’t know what Michael Chang has done with him in the off-season, but it’s incredible. Without my 20-something aces, I probably would not have won today."
Tien’s rise is rapid and accelerating and his crowd-pleasing game was a big hit with the crowd on Rod Laver Arena.
Zverev had the edge in the opening set but Tien, who is coached by former French Open champion Chang, hung with the German in the second.
Tien lacks the raw power of his opponent or the German’s potent serve, which ultimately made the difference, but he already has a tremendous feel for the geometry of the court, while his hand skills on drop shots and at the net repeatedly caught Zverev out.
He trailed 5-3 in the tie-break but a tight forehand from Zverev levelled matters and Tien then played arguably his two best points of the match, sending an overhead from the third seed flying back past him before flashing an angled forehand winner
What Tien lacks is experience, and he was unable to maintain his intensity in the third set, while Zverev saved a set point with a big serve at 5-6 in the fourth before dominating the tie-break.
