Teenager Alex De Minaur secures Australian Open berth

Australian teenager Alex De Minaur defeated Alex Bolt Sunday to capture a berth in the main draw for next month's Australian Open. De Minaur beat Bolt 6-2 6-1 6-7 (1-7) 6-1 in the wildcard playoff match to secure entry into the home event at Melbourne Park.

De Minaur, currently World No. 208, was projected to receive a discretionary wildcard had he bypass the playoff round. By defeating Bolt, De Minaur is guaranteed a trip to the first Grand Slam of 2018 with a chance to further develop his blossoming career.

A year ago, De Minaur made his Australian Open main draw debut and impressed with the first-round victory over Austrian Gerald Melzer. De Minaur acknowledged that earning his entry into the Australian Open purely on merit is more special. A year ago. De Minaur qualified on a discretionary wildcard.

"I feel like I thoroughly deserve this one - that's what happens when you are actually playing for one. I couldn't be happier with my level and I can't wait for the Australian summer to come. I think I've still got a lot to get better at. But this week my level was great throughout the whole matches. I didn't think I dropped my concentration at all," De Minaur said Sunday, via the Sydney Morning Herald.

2018 Australian Open: Destanee Aiava qualifies

Meanwhile, 17-year-old Destanee Aiava defeated Tammi Patterson 6-4, 6-0 in the women's decider to secure her berth in the 2018 Australian Open. Aiava made her Grand Slam debut at last year's Australian Open.

"I came into it this week thinking that I'll just go for it and I have nothing to lose. If it's a positive outcome then so be it, or negative, then that's fine as well. And I'm young anyway, so there's not really much expectation. I knew I finished off the first set strong so I just wanted to do the same thing and keep building and building momentum and keep firing my shots with confidence. I was trying not to think about the prize at the end. I just wanted to go for it," she said after defeating the second-seeded Patterson.

The 2018 Australian Open, the first Grand Slam event of the new season, will be staged at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne Park between Jan. 15-28. A number of top-ranked stars, including Andy Murray and Serena Williams, could potentially miss the event due to injuries.