Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time after dismantling home favourite Alex de Minaur in straight sets on Tuesday.
The Spanish world number one delivered a commanding 7-5, 6-2, 6-1 victory at Rod Laver Arena, silencing the partisan Melbourne crowd.
The 22-year-old now stands just two matches away from achieving a remarkable milestone.
Victory in his remaining fixtures would make him the youngest player in history to secure the career Grand Slam.
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Alcaraz, chasing his seventh major title, will next meet third seed Alexander Zverev for a place in the final.
The Spaniard has yet to drop a set throughout the tournament.
The opening set proved a tightly contested affair, with both players trading service breaks.
De Minaur twice retrieved breaks to level the score, much to the delight of the centre court crowd.
Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time
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However, the Australian's hopes faded when he failed to convert a fourth set point in the 12th game.
From that moment, Alcaraz took complete control.
The top seed conceded just two break points across the remaining sets, neither of which De Minaur could convert.
The sixth seed was unable to make any significant impact after losing the opener, as Alcaraz cruised through the second and third sets with ruthless efficiency.
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Carlos Alcaraz dismantled home favourite Alex de Minaur in straight sets on Tuesday
|GETTY
Alcaraz expressed satisfaction with his progress through the draw.
He said: "I'm just really happy with the way that I'm playing every match. I was increasing my level every match, which I'm really happy about. After the first match my team told me to be patient. Today I felt really comfortable playing great tennis."
Looking ahead to his semi-final opponent, the Spaniard acknowledged the challenge awaiting him.
Alcaraz said: "I've seen Sascha through the whole tournament and I know he's playing great tennis. I have to be ready. We practised in the week before the tournament and he beat me 7-6 playing such great tennis. It's going to be a great battle."
Carlos Alcaraz now stands just two matches away from achieving a remarkable milestone
|GETTY
De Minaur's quarter-final woes at major tournaments continued with this defeat, extending his record to 0-7 at this stage.
The 26-year-old, whose fiancée Katie Boulter had returned to the UK and was unable to offer courtside support, reflected philosophically on another loss to an elite opponent.
De Minaur said: "At the Australian Open I've lost to Rafa, Novak, Jannik twice, now Carlos. I'm not losing too many matches to players I possibly shouldn't lose to.
"You've just got to keep on moving. It's the only way. As tough as it is when you get results like this, you get back up, you get back on the horse, and that's it."
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