First career meeting between the two seasoned pros.
No. 7 seed Alex de Minaur is set to take on unseeded Portuguese contender Nuno Borges in the Round of 16 at the Rolex Shanghai Masters 2025 on Wednesday. This will be the first career meeting between the two players. The winner of this contest will take on either Daniil Medvedev or Learner Tien in the quarterfinal stage. Today, we are going to take you through the form and career statistics of both players ahead of this match. Finally, we will also give you the favorable betting odds in Shanghai (via BetMGM).
Alex de Minaur is yet to drop a set this week in Shanghai. The 26-year-old Australian eased past Camilo Ugo 6-4 6-2 in Round-2, before overpowering Kamil Majchrzak 6-1 7-5 in the Round of 32. The World No. 7 has won 86% service games on hard courts this year, and also picked up a title at Washington DC along the way. de Minaur will be searching for his 50th tour-level victory of 2025 against Borges, which would improve his success rate to 73.5%. He also finished as the runner-up in Rotterdam, and semifinalist in Monte Carlo and Beijing.
Nuno Borges had to overcome some monumental obstacles to reach the pre-quarterfinals in Shanghai. In Round-1, he had to fend off a whirlwind of attacks from Botic Van de Zandschulp, and came out relatively unscathed by winning in straight sets. After Stefanos Tsitsipas pulled out of the event, the World No. 51 faced a surprise opponent in Alekansandar Vukic. Although the Aussie served 10 aces and no double faults, Borges held his nerve when it mattered most. A narrow 7-6(5) 4-6 6-3 win over home favorite Juncheng Shang resulted in the 28-year-old booking his spot in the Round of 16.
The head-to-head record between Alex de Minaur and Nuno Borges is currently 0-0. They will face each other for the first time in their careers.
| Alex de Minaur | Category | Nuno Borges |
| 7 | Current Ranking | 51 |
| 298-173 | Career W-L Record | 68-77 |
| 49-18 | YTD W-L Record | 28-27 |
| 10 | Career Titles | 1 |
| 1 | YTD Titles | 0 |
| 0 | Grand Slams | 0 |
On paper, Alex de Minaur has the weapons to overcome Borges. The Australian has made vast improvements on his serve, and he is one of the few players who can choose his style of play. While he is traditionally a counter-punch specialist, de Minaur has worked on his attacking game in recent months. He was able to match World No. 2 Jannik Sinner from the baseline in Beijing, and will look to play first strike tennis and attack the net against Borges.
Prediction: Alex de Minaur in straight sets.
With pre-match odds of 1/8 in comparison with 24/5 for his opponent, Alex de Minaur is a clear favorite in the betting market over Nuno Borges. According to the implied probability on the money line, the Australian has an 80% chance of reaching the quarterfinals. Take a look at the odds for the match result and in-match specifics (as per BetMGM):
(According to BetMGM: BetMGM offers exclusive promo codes, bonus deals and accurate odds for users upon signing up. Use BetMGM to ace your betting game in all sports!)
(Image Credits: Mike Frey, Imagn Images)
