Alex de Minaur has become the latest high-profile player to withdraw from the Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) Hong Kong event, joining Nick Kyrgios on the sidelines. The Australian, ranked No. 7 in the world, has been struggling with a hip injury.
De Minaur arrived in Hong Kong on Saturday, October 11, 2025, to prepare for the tournament, following his quarter-final loss to Daniil Medvedev at the Shanghai Masters. Despite his efforts to recover, the pain proved too significant for him to compete in the high-intensity UTS format at the Kai Tak Arena.
"I was very much looking forward to participating in the first UTS event held in Hong Kong," de Minaur said. "However, it now seems I haven't physically recovered quickly enough as I was feeling the pain even before working on the practice court. After discussing with my team, I have had no choice but to withdraw and to meet my doctors for a proper assessment".
Jenson Brooksby has been named as De Minaur's replacement for the two-day tournament.
This is the second major withdrawal from the event, as Nick Kyrgios was previously forced to pull out due to a persistent knee injury. Kyrgios, however, will still be present in Hong Kong to support the event and meet fans. He is scheduled to participate in autograph sessions and meet-and-greets. Kyrgios has also offered to coach Richard Gasquet. Juncheng Shang, a rising Chinese talent ranked No. 237, has already been named as Kyrgios' replacement.
These withdrawals have led to some changes in the quarterfinal lineup. The revised quarterfinal matches scheduled for October 14 at the Kai Tak Arena are:
- Juncheng Shang vs Jakub Mensik
- Francisco Cerundolo vs Adrian Mannarino
- Coleman Wong vs Andrey Rublev
The UTS Hong Kong, the third stage of the 2025 UTS Tour, will take place on October 14 and 15. Eight players will compete for a prize pool of $1.1 million, with $305,700 reserved for the champion. Tomas Machac and Casper Ruud have already secured qualification for the UTS Grand Final in London. For Wong, Zhang, Shang and Cerúndolo, only lifting the trophy in Hong Kong will do, as De Minaur and Rublev only need to win a single match to qualify.
