“The Demon” Alex de Minaur has spoken about his ambitions as he prepares to head to Europe for UTS Oslo.

In an interview with Esquire Australia, conducted after his fourth-round exit at the Australian Open courtesy of Andrey “Rublo” Rublev, the 24-year-old talked about how he approaches his tennis career.

“The one thing I want to achieve in my career is that I can sit on the couch, once it’s all said and done and know that I gave myself the best shot and I did everything I could,” he said.

“I don’t want to have any regrets. That means getting the most out of myself and seeing where I need to improve, what I need to do in certain situations to ultimately be able to finish my career and be content and know that I gave it my all.”

“The Demon” described the Australian swing as “positive” for him, with his superb form at the United Cup culminating in his rise into the Top 10 of the rankings.

And he speculated on why the public have taken him so much to their hearts, saying: “I think they see someone who has made playing for Australia a priority, is a competitor, is a fighter, and I guess is quite a normal kid.”

De Minaur’s competitive fighting spirit will be on show at UTS Oslo between February 9 and 11 – when he will have a rematch with Rublo in the round-robin group stage. Both men are in Group B along with two Frenchmen, The Rebel Benoit Paire and Gael “La Monf” Monfils.

“The Ice Man” Casper Ruud, “The Viking” Holger Rune, “The Bublik Enemy” Alexander Bublik and Dominic “Thieminho” Thiem round off the field and will compete in Group A.