Tennis ace Alex De Minaur is among Australians caught up in Mexico amid a wave of violence triggered by the police shooting of a drug lord.

Australians have been warned about travelling to the popular holiday destination.

De Minaur and his fiancée Katie Boulter are in the country for an upcoming tournament in Acapulco.

The tennis star was due to play on Tuesday.

However, there have been calls to evacuate the tennis players until the unrest settles down.

Tennis broadcaster Brett Haber warned that the athletes should get out now.

“Just left Mexico. Police activity at the airport was insane,” Haber said on social media.

“Polite suggestion to the (APT and WTA) — and to Larry Ellison: get one plane to Acapulco and one to Merida and get everybody out of there.

“Put them up for an extra week at Indian Wells to train and be safe. This is not a drill.”

De Minaur is due to play Patrick Kypson in Acapulco on Tuesday.

Mexican drug lord Nemesio ‌Oseguera, commonly known as “El Mencho”, was killed in a military raid, as the government ramps up pressure on ‌cartels after US intervention threats.

Mexico’s defence ministry said a shootout in the western state of Jalisco left Oseguera seriously injured. He died during an air transfer ‌to Mexico City on Sunday (local time).

The operation set off a wave of violence, with torched cars and gunmen blocking highways in more than half a dozen states.

Videos ​on ​social media showed cars ablaze, sending dark smoke into the sky, ​on roads in Jalisco.

Mexican media outlets reported burning vehicles and gunmen ‌blocking highways in more than half a dozen states across the country, particularly in the north and west.

The military operation against Oseguera follows a pressure campaign ​from the Trump administration on Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s government to ramp up its crackdown on drug trafficking, including US threats to intervene directly in Mexico.

“The operation for his arrest was led by the defence ministry, and he ended up being killed,” a government source familiar with the operation told Reuters.

US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said Oseguera’s killing was a “great development” for the US and Mexico, as well as the rest of Latin America.

The kingpin’s killing notches a major victory ⁠for Mexico’s war on drug cartels that are responsible for smuggling billions of dollars in ‌cocaine and fentanyl ​into the US. It is also expected to unleash a wave of violence across Mexico.

“A tremendous amount of violence is going to happen,” said Vanda ​Felbab-Brown, an expert ‌on international organised crime.

She compared Oseguera to other key drug figures taken down in recent years, Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, both of the rival Sinaloa ​cartel.

“Apart from the heads of the Sinaloa cartel, El Mencho has been the biggest prize for many, many years.”

On Monday, Australian authorities warned about travel to the area.

“Serious security incidents have been reported across the state of Jalisco, including in Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta, following a federal law-enforcement operation against organised crime,” the government’s Smartraveller website said in its updated advice.

“Authorities in Puerto Vallarta have issued a public advisory to shelter in place. There may be transport disruptions, including by air. Stay alert and follow the advice of the local authorities.”

Americans in Mexico have been warned to “shelter in place” until further notice.

-with AAP