I remember watching a young and very thin Alexei Popyrin strut his stuff at the Australian Open many years ago.
The date was the January 19, 2019 and it was a cold night at Melbourne Park as the 19-year-old walked onto Margaret Court Arena for the first time in the biggest match of his career.
He would take on the 28th-seeded French star Lucas Pouille, Popyrin was ranked 149th in the world and had only gained entry into the tournament after receiving a wildcard a week prior to the start of the Australian Open. Not many people watching the game live or on television had given the teenager any chance leading into the match, but they would eventually leave mesmerised by his talent.
After less than two hours it was Pouille who brought up a match point in a one-sided affair, before Popyrin saved it and not only went on to win the game, but also won that set in a thrilling tie-breaker to show everyone that he had true Aussie grit.
His talent then started to really shine through as he took the fourth set 6-4, forcing this once one-sided match into a fifth and deciding set. He was eventually outlasted by Pouille, going down 6-3 in the final set in a match that ended up going for almost four hours to finish at 12:34am.
Australian fans left Margaret Court Arena early that morning with a feeling of disappointment but with a renewed sense of optimism that this 6" 5' kid from Sydney could become something special. At the time Pouille was full of praise labelling Popyrin a “great player”.
“He has a bright future, and I am just very happy to have got through this one,” he said after the match.
Fast-forward five years and the now 25-year-old is making waves in the tennis world after strong progression in the last few seasons at ATP Tour level. When Popyrin won his second ever title in 2023 at the Croatia Open and followed it up with a spot in his first Masters quarter-final, the Sydneysider was well on his way.
A strong 2024 season has followed with Popyrin ticking off many bucket-list items he'd had since he was a kid. He made his Olympic Games debut for Australia where he made the third round, while weeks later he won his first Master’s 1000 title at the Canadian Open. On his journey to the title, he 25-year-old defeated five top-20 players including superstars like Russia’s Andrey Rublev and Belarus’ Grigor Dimitrov.
That feat skyrocketed him to a career-high ranking of number 23 before reaching the fourth round of the US Open, where he went on to defeat world number two Novak Djokovic on his way to a career-best Grand Slam result.
From the very first time I laid eyes on Alexei Popyrin I had a quiet confidence that he could grow to become anything, and I think everyone else at Melbourne Park on that night in 2019 did as well. He has always possessed a big serve with great changes of direction and pace, while being capable of blasting massive forehands all over the court. He also has wonderful hands and volleying skills for a man of his height, the sky was the absolute limit for the Aussie ... and it still is.
Currently sitting at number 24 in the world and with increasing maturity and consistency in his game, Popyrin has the talent of compatriot Nick Kyrgios, and will undoubtedly get the best out of himself under coaches Xavier Malisse and Neville Godwin. Lleyton Hewitt is one of Popyrin's childhood heroes and has also kept a close eye on the young Aussie, always in his corner if he needs him.
Could ‘Poppy’ become the best Australian tennis player since his mentor all those years ago?
He has what so many spirited Aussies before him haven’t had ... massive weapons that have been able to dismantle some of the best players in the world across his career and particularly the last 12 months.
He has a calm and composed demeanour about him even in times when he is facing great pressure and expectation. His deadly one-two punch set up by a big serve and often finished off with a sizzling forehand are elements that have made even the very best opponents wary of the danger he poses. After recently bowing out of the US Open in the fourth round, Popyrin rued the loss as a “lost opportunity” but admitted he had surprised himself with his rapid rise.
“It definitely does feel like a little opportunity lost,” he said.
“But if you would have told me at the start of the summer, I would have been 23rd in the world with a Masters title and in the second week of a slam for the first time, I probably would have taken it considering the position I was in.”
Novak Djokovic who is arguably the greatest player to ever step onto a tennis court also paid tribute to Popyrin after the young Aussie’s breakthrough victory against him.
“He’s just beaten me, the defending champion here, so he deserves the credit for that, and respect. If he serves well, plays well, he can beat anybody,” he said.
The 2017 French Open Junior Champion is now the second-highest ranked Australian tennis player behind only Alex de Minaur (No.11), and has his sights set on many more achievements as he enters the prime of his career.
Tennis always consumed Popyrin's life, picking up a racquet at a very early age before joining the Kim Warwick Tennis Academy in Sydney when he was just four. By the time he had turned eight years old, he attended the Australian Open for the historic match between Hewitt and Marcos Baghdatis and dreamed of following in his hero’s footsteps one day.
That match ended up going for a mammoth 4hrs 45 minutes and didn’t finish until 4:34am, well past young Popyrin's bedtime.
From that moment on, he was completely obsessed with tennis dreaming of winning trophies and achieving everything possible. He and his parents relocated to Dubai later that year in 2008 to help further their son’s career, they then moved to Spain a few years later where he trained meticulously with fellow Aussie and close friend, Alex de Minaur. Popyrin played his first professional match in October 2013 at just 14 years old, and soon joined the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in France to help take his game to the next level.
He hasn’t looked back and is now living the dream as he looks to make more history. We don’t know exactly what is next for ‘Poppy’, but one thing is for sure, he is sure to wow crowds all over the world for many years to come.
Photo can be found here, used with a Creative Commons licence.
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