After a troublesome defeat in the Japan Open per week in the past, Felix Auger-Aliassime has bounced again in the easiest way.
The Canadian took down Alexander Shevchenko in three units 7-6(2), 3-6, 7-6(1) in a nail-biter of a quarter-finals match on the Swiss Indoors in Basel. Although Auger-Aliassime dropped the second set, his two large wins within the first and third units paved the best way for a poised victory.
Together with his victory at present, Auger-Aliassime has reached his first semifinals since February 2023 on the Qatar Open.
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The match was a real battle of equals because it lasted over two and a half hours and resulted in two units being determined by tiebreakers. Whereas Shevchenko ran out of steam because the third set progressed, he put up a struggle till the very finish.
Auger-Aliassime gained his first set in a heated tiebreaker 7-6(2). The Canadian was on level as he secured six aces whereas scoring factors in 73 per cent of his first serves. Although he was much less dominant in his second serve, he nonetheless managed to attain factors on 53 per cent of them.
He neither shined nor crumbled in his returns as he managed to interrupt his opponent’s serve as soon as within the first set. His opponent solely broke Auger-Aliassime’s serve as soon as as properly in that very same set.
The second set went Shevchenko’s manner, with the distinction maker being a single break of serve within the fourth recreation that allowed Shevchenko to go on a large enough run to widen the hole. Auger-Aliassime’s serve remained sturdy regardless of dropping the second set, recording seven aces alongside the best way and scoring factors in 79 per cent of his first serves.
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The third and closing set, nevertheless, might need been essentially the most rigorous of the three. The aces have been even at three a chunk, although the Canadian noticed extra success in his first serve factors. They each additionally transformed two break factors every, however Shevchenko couldn’t profit from his serves in the course of the tiebreaker. It was a lopsided end to an in any other case tightly contested recreation, however Auger-Aliassime made essentially the most of his opponent’s fatigue to seal it.
With the trophy in his sights, Auger-Aliassime is now nearer to repeating the victory he achieved in the identical match a yr in the past. Tomorrow he’ll face Holder Rune (1) as he inches nearer to defending his title.
