He exudes confidence. He excels in every aspect of the game. And he wins, time and time again. Félix Auger-Aliassime won his third title in three weeks and his 13e consecutive victory, Sunday, at the Basel tournament.
Posted at 11:54 a.m.
Updated at 1:33 p.m.
It makes you wonder who will be able to stop the Quebecer. The day after his victory against the world number 1, he appeared as pumped up as he has been for three weeks to defeat the young Dane Holger Rune in two sets of 6-3 and 7-5.
Félix Auger-Aliassime is not used to big celebrations, his reactions after his victories in the last two weeks are proof of that. But this time was different. After winning the final point, he stretched out full length, hands on his head and a smile on his face. He got up to shake his opponent’s hand, then the referee’s, before turning to the crowd. As he advanced on the field, he let out a cry of victory. One of those cries that come from far away…
“I think it was a real reaction, it came on its own,” he explained in a post-game interview on the pitch. Especially with all the tension there was in that last game. I’m in heaven right now. »
And he has every reason to be. Not only did he win his third consecutive title, this one of ATP 500 caliber, but this victory moved him up to 6e rank in the race for the ATP Finals. This tournament, which will take place in Turin, will welcome the eight best players of the season and FAA is fighting for one of the remaining places.
“It’s been an incredible week, but a long year. It’s a long winning streak, but it’s not over. I hope to continue like this, but right now I feel all the great emotions that come with winning a tournament. »
PHOTO ARND WIEGMANN, REUTERS
Felix Auger-Aliassime
The Basel tournament has long been one of the favorites of the great Roger Federer, who was born in this city. He has triumphed there 10 times in his career.
“I thought of him this morning, mentioned Auger-Aliassime. I thought to myself: it would be so cool to win here, where he has won 10 times. […] Lifting this trophy is sure to be special. »
In control
It was the first time that Félix Auger-Aliassime, 9e world racket, faced Holger Rune, 19 and 25e in the world. Both winners of their respective tournaments last Sunday, the tennis players arrived on the Swiss court with confidence. While the Quebecer had won his last 12 games, the Dane was riding a streak of 9 consecutive wins.
True to form and because you don’t change a winning recipe, Félix Auger-Aliassime quickly shone in service. His opponent was quick to show, too, his expertise in this area. Combative, Rune cut a fine figure in the first round ahead of a still superior Auger-Aliassime.
The latter, explosive and excellent at the net, had four aces and won 83% of his first serves to take the first set in just 34 minutes.
The second run lasted double. The young Rune came back strong and put pressure on the Quebecer, who sometimes showed some signs of fatigue, committing three double faults. Nothing to prevent him from heading for his fourth title of the season, however.
PHOTO GABRIEL MONNET, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
The Danish Holger Rune
Serving at 5-5, the Dane was played a few tricks by Auger-Aliassime. He was seen kicking the racket a few times in frustration after dropping a point. FAA went there with a break in service before winning the last game to end the duel.
The Quebecer was not broken once in the tournament. After collecting his big trophy on the stage, he showed his appreciation to his young opponent.
“You had a great week, again. You have improved so much. I saw your progress. What you are doing at the start of your career is fantastic, so well done to you and your team. I’m sure we will face each other many times in the future, ”he hinted on the microphone.
When the ATP rankings are updated on Monday, Auger-Aliassime will drop from 9e at 8e world rank. Next stop: Paris, next week. The Masters 1000 table being already published, we know that he is in the same portion as Carlos Alcaraz, Andrey Rublev and Daniil Medvedev.
So, who can stop Félix Auger-Aliassime?