Alex de Minaur busted through his Australian Open fourth-round ceiling with a brutal display against Alex Michelsen. Now, a date with world No. 1 Jannik Sinner looms.

A semi-final against American Ben Shelton – the lowest-ranked player left in the draw – looms for Sinner, who will avoid 10-time champion Novak Djokovic and second seed Alexander Zverev in the last four. That draw and this performance has brought him tantalisingly close to defending his Australian Open crown.

It was the opening round of the 2017 Australian Open in de Minaur’s first main draw at his first major championship in his home country, when the then-17-year-old saved a match point in the fourth set before beating Gerald Melzer in five sets and almost four hours.