Felix Auger-Aliassime will certainly welcome a return to the indoor European laborious courts that he dominated in 2022 after his Asian swing got here to a disappointing finish on Friday in Shanghai.
The Canadian misplaced his opening match on the Rolex Shanghai Masters to Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics in an epic three-setter, sending him again west and not using a win in Asia.
It was all about missed alternatives for Auger-Aliassime, who has misplaced his opening match in seven of his final eight occasions, as he let the primary set slip away and couldn’t full the comeback within the third, falling 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-3 in three hours and 23 minutes.
Fucsovics’ technique of attacking at each alternative paid off as he struck 39 winners to the Canadian’s 30 and gained 66 per cent of Auger-Aliassime’s second serve factors. The Hungarian transformed three of his 4 break factors whereas the Canadian solely managed three of 12.
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The opening set was filled with probabilities that slipped away for Auger-Aliassime. He broke first for a 2-0 lead solely to be instantly damaged again. The Canadian had six extra break factors within the first set, together with two set factors at 5-4, however he couldn’t convert.
That proved pricey as Auger-Aliassime fell behind an early minibreak within the tiebreak and by no means recovered to drop a primary set he might have taken.
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As soon as once more within the second set, it was the Canadian touchdown the primary blow with a break for a 3-2 lead however identical to the primary set, Fucsovics responded instantly to place the set again on serve.
This time, Auger-Aliassime didn’t let his later probabilities slip away. At 4-4 with Fucsovics serving, the Hungarian misfired a forehand to offer the four-time ATP Tour titlist a pair of break factors and this time he bought the break when Fucsocvics sliced a backhand into the web.
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Serving for the set, there was no repeat of his earlier breaks and Auger-Aliassime held to fifteen to increase the match.
However within the decider, it was the Hungarian’s flip to take an early lead, breaking for 2-0 with a forehand winner. Not like Auger-Aliassime’s two early breaks within the earlier units, Fucsovics backed up the break and stretched his result in 3-0.
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Auger-Aliassime solely had as soon as probability to get better the break within the decider and it got here too late because the Hungarian served for the match at 5-3. After saving two match factors, a backhand lengthy from his opponent gave the Canadian a break level, however Fucsovics escaped with an enormous forehand winner. He finally transformed his fourth match level in an epic closing recreation.
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