HSBC Championships 2026: Alex de Minaur eases past Denis Shapovalov to reach third Queen’s quarter-final
• 3 minute read
Alex de Minaur was in solid form as the world No.6 reached the quarter-finals of the HSBC Championships for a third time – continuing his pursuit of a first title at Queen’s.
De Minaur took just 65 minutes to book his place in the quarter-finals – beating the 2021 Wimbledon semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-1.
The Australian picks up another straight sets win to add to his victory over another Canadian, Gabriel Diallo, yesterday.
It’s another statement win over a strong grass court player, who came back from a break and 5-4 down in a deciding set against Jack Pinnington Jones on Monday.
The top seed at Queen’s continues to show why grass is one of, if not his best surface. The Australian has three grass court titles to his name, Nottingham, Eastbourne, and last year in s’Hertogenbosch, and also made the final of the Dutch tournament last week.
He’s now into the quarter-finals at the HSBC Championships for the third time in his career and is a former finalist at The Queen’s Club back in 2023.
Playing at the tournament that he calls his ‘home away from home’, De Minaur looks like the man to beat this week.
“It feels amazing, it’s one of the most special courts there is on tour. For me to be able to come out and play a match like that today, I’m stoked. Happy to be in the quarter-finals and excited for more hopefully.
I’m definitely looking forward to a day off tomorrow. The body will definitely love that. I’ll make sure to recover, have a light day tomorrow and I’ll be ready to go, full of energy for Friday.
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While De Minaur extends his perfect tour-level record against the Canadian to 6-0, this one, being on grass would have been extra special.
The two players last met on grass in 2016, when Shapovalov won the Wimbledon boys’ singles final over the Australian.
10 years later, De Minaur finally got his chance to play Shapovalov on the grass again and made no mistake this time around.
"We’ve shared a lot of beautiful memories on the court together," he said. "He’s a hell of a competitor. We’ve gone up the ranks together.
"I’m in a good spot right now, but I still have a lot of hunger and determination. Hopefully by the end of this grass court swing I can touch a new career high."
After a run of three straight breaks to start the match, the Australian quickly settled into the match as the more consistent of the two.
Shapovalov showed glimpses of brilliant shot-making, but his opponent’s ability to keep the ball in play, with pressure, was tough for him to handle.
With the chance to break at 1-1 in the second set, De Minaur played a great defensive return to the baseline, to which Shapovalov responded with a wild forehand into the net.
The Canadian was frustrated by the break and lost eight of the next 10 points as De Minaur marched ahead to a 5-1 cushion.
Serving to stay in the contest, Shapovalov seemed eager for the match to finish. He saved three match points, but on the fourth time of asking, the world No.41 hit his ninth double fault of the match.
De Minaur’s next challenge will be American Brandon Nakashima, who saw off Ignacio Buse in the first match of the day.
Similar to the Australian, Nakashima is an extremely solid player on the grass and will be playing in back-to-back quarter-finals at Queen’s.
They have played twice with one win apiece – most recently in Washington last year, when De Minaur won en route to the title.
They will play their quarter-final on Friday 19 June. You can watch coverage of the HSBC Championships on the BBC, BBC digital services and Tennis Channel.
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