Physically primed and mentally set, Alex de Minaur says he's never been better placed to crash through the Australian Open fourth-round barrier.
De Minaur will take much more than a 3-2 winning record into his last-16 clash with Andrey Rublev on Sunday.
The 24-year-old will carry a career-high No.10 ranking, unshakable belief from his golden start to 2024 and peak fitness after needing just six hours and two minutes of court time to reach the second week.
In a sign of his growing substance on tennis's biggest stage, de Minaur will on Sunday highlight the evening session on Rod Laver Arena - relegating 10-times champion Novak Djokovic to an afternoon slot on the showpiece court for the first time in three years and 16 matches.
Last year, de Minaur toiled for almost eight hours to progress to the same stage before being crushed by Djokovic in straight sets.
The year before, he needed a tad less time but still proved no match for Jannik Sinner in a similarly lopsided last-16 loss.
It's been a totally different story this campaign, with de Minaur handed a saloon passage to the second round when Canadian Milos Raonic walked off injured early in the third set.
That awkward cameo of an opener preceded two swift straight-set wins over Italians Matteo Arnaldi and Flavio Cobolli.
"I probably must be feeling the freshest I've been at this stage of the tournament," de Minaur said.
"I got a little bit lucky with Milos pulling out. Therefore, the match wasn't too long. Then I played two straight-sets wins that weren't too long.
"Physically I'm feeling great. Now it's just about giving all my energy for what's to come.
"This is where I want to be. This is where the tail end of the tournament starts, the second week of slams.
"I've always been told that the first week of a slam is to get through however way you want to, and the second week is when you start to play your real tennis.
"Hopefully I can do that. Now the matches are all against, normally, better-ranked opponents. I'm looking forward to that."
Rublev, a nine-times grand slam quarter-finalist, is ranked five places above the 10th-seeded de Minaur.
But he's certainly no Djokovic or Sinner, leaving the Sydnesider with his best opportunity yet to reach the last eight of his home major.
"We've played a few times over the years," de Minaur said of his rivalry with the Russian.
"Last year I got him in Rotterdam and he got me at the end of the year in Bercy. Both indoors. Both kind of solid conditions. Both tight matches.
"He's got some immense firepower, and his forehand is deadly. It's basically do your best to not allow him to hit forehands, especially from the middle of the court.
"That will probably be the game plan against him. I definitely can't allow him to dictate. I've got to try and get him on the run."
A fourth victory over Rublev would thrust de Minaur into a quarter-final against either the fourth-seeded Sinner or Russian world No.15 Karen Khachanov.
Not that the home hope is looking beyond his next match.
"First of all, I'll try to get a little bit better and beat my personal best, get to a quarter-finals," de Minaur said.
"That's the first step. I've made a couple of fourth rounds in the past. I maybe have gotten to that point and not played the type of match I wanted to.
"I'm hoping I can break that barrier and go one further."
