Alex de Minaur shows middle finger to hostile section of crowd in defeat to Arthur Fils at Barcelona Open

Australia’s tennis star Alex de Minaur had a rather tough outing in the ongoing Barcelona Open. The 25-year-old secured one of the biggest wins of his career as he defeated the former world number one Spain’s Rafael Nadal in the round of 32.

The joy of that win was short-lived as the Sydney-born suffered a defeat in the round of 16 to France’s Arthur Fils in straight sets with a score of 7-5, 6-2. During that match, not only De Minaur faced a tough opponent but a hostile crowd as well, something that did not go down well with him who ended up showing a middle finger to the hostile section of the crowd.

The result against Fils was an unexpected one as De Minaur came into the tournament as one of the favourites, especially after his performances in the recent past. The world number 11, in the event before the Barcelona Open in Monaco, ended up playing in the quarterfinal where he lost to the current world number one Serbia’s Novak Djokovic with a score of 7-5, 6-4. De Minaur also won an ATP event earlier in the season when he lifted the Mexican Open after beating Norway’s Casper Ruud in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-4.