Last year’s winner Alex de Minaur has earned his fifth Newcombe Medal nomination after peaking at world No.6 and reaching three consecutive major quarterfinals in a banner 2024.
Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 2 December 2024 | Matt Trollope
Year in review
No.1-ranked Australian Alex de Minaur enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2024, with a career-high singles ranking of world No.6.
He claimed ATP trophies in Acapulco and ‘s-Hertogenbosch – taking his career total to nine singles titles – and made consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinals at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open.
MORE: Demon reflects on a rollercoaster 2024
De Minaur’s exceptional form also included a starring role in guiding Australia to the United Cup semifinals in January, before he reached the second week of Australian Open 2024.
Among his five top-10 wins in 2024 was an upset of world No.1 Novak Djokovic at the United Cup.
He overcame a hip cartilage tear, sustained at Wimbledon, to become the first Australian since Lleyton Hewitt 20 years earlier to qualify in singles for the season-ending ATP Finals.
Newcombe Medal history
This marks De Minaur’s fifth Newcombe Medal nomination.
He earned the prestigious prize in 2023, five years after winning it jointly alongside Ash Barty in 2018.
De Minaur has also been honoured at the Australian Tennis Awards as Junior Male Athlete of the Year in both 2016 and 2017.
Reaction
“It’s such an honour to be nominated for the Newcombe Medal… It means so much. So much hard work throughout the year and this is one of those rewards,” De Minaur said.
“It’s been a great year for me, a year of many firsts, cracking a lot of milestones and a lot of goals that I’ve set out with the whole team. I’m extremely proud of everything that has been accomplished.
MORE: Seven Aussies nominated for Newcombe Medal
“It’s incredible to be part of Australian tennis and the immense success that’s been had throughout the field by so many of my teammates. So many accolades throughout the year, whether it’s Olympic medals, Grand Slams, career high rankings in both singles and doubles, there’s been so much great Australian tennis being played.
“It’s just a pleasure to be a part of it and I’m very happy to have been nominated among so many worthy nominees.”
The Newcombe Medal, Australian Tennis Awards will be held on Monday 9 December at Melbourne’s Palladium Ballroom.
Follow along on Tennis Australia’s social channels as the evening unfolds using the hashtag #Newks24.
Find out more about the awards, including award categories and previous recipients.
