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Well beyond his days as a rookie, but not yet a veteran, Alex de Minaur is right in the sweet spot of his career.

At 26 and closing in on 300 match wins, the Australian number-one and nine-time ATP Tour champion is eyeing a long-term return to the Top 10 and to pushing even deeper into the second week of Grand Slams, where is now a mainstay.

“I've got the experience now. I've got the knowledge, the physicality side of things. Everything is just there for me to go out and perform,” De Minaur told ATPTour.com at the Citi DC Open in Washington, where he is the seventh seed. “I can really have a swing these next three or four years and really show that I'm at my peak and break through some barriers.

“I'm ready to go deep into tournaments. It's just up to myself to put those results right.”

De Minaur is back in Washington, D.C. for the first time since 2022 with a shot at returning to the ATP Rankings Top 10 ahead of the US Open, where last year he reached his third consecutive Grand Slam quarter-final after deep runs at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

De Minaur has no points to defend during Washington and the expanded 12-day ATP Masters 1000s in Toronto and Cincinnati; he missed this period last year after injuring his hip at Wimbledon, where he withdrew before his scheduled quarter-final with Novak Djokovic.

“It was somewhat difficult at the start of the year and mentally taxing knowing that I had zeros on my ranking because I missed three Masters [also Shanghai],” De Minaur said. “I knew it would be important to put myself in a good position for the back end of the year when I have little to defend, giving hope that I could gain some serious points and momentum and build on the ranking. 

"So going into the tail end of the year, I’m excited for the opportunity and hoping I can play good tennis and take care of my chances.”

De Minaur has fond memories of Washington - both on and off the court. In 2018, then ranked number 72, he made a surprise run to his first ATP 500 title match, where he fell in straight sets to Alexander Zverev.

“I think that was the last time I won a match here,” he quipped about the three opening-round losses in the nation’s capital that followed his 2018 breakout. “It was a huge week for me making the final of a 500, being ranked where I was, playing some great tennis along the way. I remember some epic matches, one against Rublev in the semi-finals.

“I'm hoping after having a little bit of time away from here to come back and play some good tennis again.”

The world number-12 says that he loves the city itself, warmly recalling the time he and his team hired electric scooters to cover more ground on the Washington Mall than he does on the baseline.“I actually love the city here in Washington. We grabbed the scooters and just went around and saw everything from the White House to all the other unbelievable monuments,” he said.

De Minaur is also happy to be spending time with fiance Katie Boulter, who is competing at the joint ATP/WTA 500, admitting that her presence provided additional incentive to return to the tournament.

“It's more over the years the schedule has slightly changed. There's been different tournaments on during this week. Last year we had obviously the Olympics,” De Minaur said.

“I've always wanted to come back and it does make it a lot better having Katie around and being a combined event for us to be able to spend some time together, being on the same timezone and just living somewhat of a normal life.”

De Minaur is playing his first event since reaching the Wimbledon fourth round, where he blitzed Novak Djokovic in the first set only to see the 24-time major champion rally to a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 win.

“I felt like I had my chances,” he said. “We should have been in a fifth set. It slipped away pretty quickly, but those are the matches I need to start winning. I’ve identified a few areas to work on with my team, and hopefully that helps me take the next step.”

A winner of 279 career matches, De Minaur will play the victor of Belgian David Goffin and China’s Buyunchaokete in his opening match in Washington.

With 30 wins this season, De Minaur is 10th in the ATP Live Race to Turin, well positioned to compete for one of seven remaining spots at November’s Nitto ATP Finals, where last year he qualified for the first time.

After winning either 46 or 47 matches in each of the past three seasons, he's also challenging himself to crack the 50-wins milestone for the first time.

“That’s the goal,” he said. “Twenty more wins? I think it’s doable.”

Alex de Minaur spoke exclusively to the ATP Tour from the Citi Open in Washington.