After a four-set loss to Jakub Mensik in the third round at Roland Garros, Alex de Minaur is heading straight to grass-court competition again, targeting the Dutch tournament he won in 2024 before Wimbledon. In parallel, Taylah Preston is also chasing momentum
Alex de Minaur was still living inside the sting of a four-set defeat by Jakub Mensik at Roland Garros when the question hit: rest or reset.
The Australian No.1 didn’t linger long on the sidelines. He decided to “get back on the bike” straight away, chasing grass-court rhythm as he tries to recover the form that’s slipped since Paris.
De Minaur is hoping to regain the grass-court title he won in 2024. a landmark moment that started in the Netherlands and carried forward. This time. he’s aiming to repair the season with match time at ’s-Hertogenbosch. the traditional Dutch tournament where he won two years ago before going on to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon later.
There’s a clear reason he’s leaning into the grass. De Minaur is typically eager to escape clay-court tennis—the sort of slog that can feel unrewarding—so he can head for the faster surface. After the Paris exit, that instinct turned into urgency.
Last year, he skipped the event after feeling down in the dumps following his second-round exit in Paris to Alexander Bublik. This time, after discussions with his team, he accepted a wildcard invite from the Netherlands organisers.
That wildcard matters in more ways than one. De Minaur won his 11th career title at Rotterdam in February, but the results since have gone largely downhill. Now, with the grass stretch ahead, he’s trying to turn the season back toward something he recognizes.
The timing is also sharpened by the draw. World No.7 de Minaur will be one of three top-10 players in the ATP 250 field for the event that begins on Saturday with qualifiers. Joining him are No.6 Felix Auger-Aliassime and No.8 Daniil Medvedev.
On the women’s side, the same “move to grass, move forward” energy is running through Australia’s summer buildup toward Wimbledon qualifying.
Taylah Preston knows exactly what it feels like to lose on clay and feel the need for a different kind of tennis. The country’s No.6-ranked woman played two tour-level matches on clay this Spring and lost them both. That included her first-round qualifier at Roland Garros.
In Birmingham, though, she looked refreshed by the prospect of grass-court competition—crossing the Channel and throwing herself into the Birmingham Open WTA 125 event at Edgbaston Priory.
She started with confidence, beating Briton Alicia Dudeney in the first round. Then she continued her momentum by defeating another home player, Katie Swan, in the round-of-16 on Thursday (Friday AEST).
But her run ended at the point where it mattered most for her confidence: her first quarter-final at this level since she reached the semis in the much bigger WTA 250 event in Hobart at the start of the year.
Preston bowed out 2-6 6-3 6-4 to American Ashlyn Krueger. Even so, the forward motion is still there. She is set to rise to a new career-high at No.126 after her Birmingham run.
In the background, Australian hopes for Wimbledon qualification are building in both singles and the wider ecosystem of grass-court tournaments, as players try to chain momentum into the weeks that follow.
In the equivalent men’s Challenger event in Birmingham, Rinky Hijikata also made the quarters. He was defeated there by British ’Aussie slayer’ Arthur Fery. who had already earned momentum by defeating Murray Bridge veteran Alex Bolt 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 in the previous round. Fery then took care of Sydney’s fifth seed 7-6 (9-7) 6-3.
So while Paris left its mark, the grass-court swing has started—fast. For de Minaur, it’s a targeted return designed to stabilize a season that’s wobbled. For Preston. it’s a different kind of rebound: not a trophy chase yet. but a climb back toward the shape of tennis she needs heading into Wimbledon qualifying.
Alex de Minaur Jakub Mensik Roland Garros grass court ’s-Hertogenbosch Wimbledon Taylah Preston Birmingham Open WTA 125 Ashlyn Krueger Felix Auger-Aliassime Daniil Medvedev wildcard
Grass is greener like always… why does tennis drama sound like my ex text messages.
So he lost at Paris and then just… goes to grass? I mean clay is hard but grass is easier right? Sounds like he’s avoiding the problem.
I thought Rotterdam is the same as Paris?? Like different courts but same event? Also ‘back on the bike’ is such a weird phrase for tennis, like he’s racing a bicycle.
Wildcards are rigged tbh. If he’s World No.7 why does he need a wildcard invite to the Dutch tourney anyway. And they’re saying results went downhill since Rotterdam but the article barely explains anything after that, just vibes and grass.