Paul Rivard: ¡Vamos Félix! – Tennis Canada

The maple leaf evidently has a galvanizing—and even bolstering—impact on Canada’s No.1 Félix Auger-Aliassime. 

Final week in Spain, the 22-year-old put a few of his finest tennis on show, and he simply occurred to do it at a males’s workforce tennis competitors that pits nation towards nation.   

Simply as he did on the ATP Cup in January 2022, he led the nationwide squad to its Davis Cup wins and made certain Canada punched its ticket for the Finals in November.   

And to suppose he wasn’t even imagined to compete! 

Because it seems, his shock look supercharged the workforce and was a miracle treatment for his less-than-stellar season. 

The previous six months have been good, however not nice, for Félix. Since his two finals in February (certainly one of which gave him his very first ATP title), he’s been 22–1, which most likely isn’t the report he’d imagined. 

Regardless of his younger age, Auger-Aliassime has pocketed massive wins in any respect ranges and earned a spot within the Prime 10, which he ought to re-enter sooner relatively than later over the subsequent few weeks, particularly with all that additional Davis Cup confidence that got here together with his sterling victory over Carlos Alcaraz on September 16.  

Some context: 

On Sunday, September 11, Alcaraz claimed his first Slam and took his place as the brand new World No.1. Lower than 48 hours later, he touched down in Valencia, which is only a two-hour drive from his hometown of El Palmar, to hitch the Spanish delegation at Davis Cup. 

The teenager is now a worldwide sensation, so think about the fanfare when he descended upon Spain because the newly appointed admiral of the nation’s tennis armada.  

After sitting out the primary tie towards Serbia to relaxation, he took on Canada within the type of veteran and underdog Félix Auger-Aliassime.  

The Canadian was virtually good to begin issues off, apart from his short-lived however lethal hunch within the tiebreak. Forward 3-1, he misplaced the subsequent six factors and gave Alcaraz the primary set 6-7 (3). 

However Auger-Aliassime discovered a solution to cease the momentum and regain his confidence and consistency. Along with his serve (certainly one of his two favorite weapons) on level, he solely gave away the primary break level at 2-1 within the second set, after 92 minutes.  

At 4-4, after a collection of dramatic rallies that thrilled followers within the stadium and at dwelling, it was as much as Félix to interrupt for the primary time within the match. 

Within the third, Auger-Aliassime broke Alcaraz early on and silenced the gang. Forward 2-1, he fought off 4 break factors with the assistance of 4 aces to shut out the almost 12-minute recreation.  

A lot to the chagrin of the native followers, he broke once more and withstood three breaks within the eighth and last recreation to clinch the victory. 

And he did so spectacularly, enjoying tennis we haven’t seen from him since Canada’s win on the ATP Cup. Sure, one other workforce match.    

That’s an essential element, because it wasn’t the primary time in his brief however sensible profession that Félix was in a position to depend on his finest sources when Canada’s honour was on the road and the courtside seats had been full of the acquainted faces of his countrymen shouting their assist on each level. 

And let’s not neglect that Félix made it occur with a distinct accomplice every time.  

He’s develop into the frequent denominator in Canadian tennis. 

And he wasn’t even imagined to be in Valencia. He had declined, however his early departure from Flushing Meadows most likely motivated him to get again within the combine asap.  

Who is aware of what the wins might do for the remainder of his season and the remainder of his profession? 

Don’t neglect, Félix was up towards the highest participant on the earth—a No.1 who’s labored laborious to get there. Carlos Alcaraz is the person to beat proper now. Félix delivered wonderful tennis towards the highest canine, on his dwelling turf, in a struggle for Canada’s honour. That’s main. 

In keeping with Sportsnet analyst Robert Bettauer, Alcaraz vs. Auger-Aliassime is a conflict we’ll see once more: “Whenever you watch these two gamers at this younger age and enjoying such a match, with their data already, it’s not a stretch to suppose this match might be a Grand Slam last someday, within the subsequent two or three years. These two are going to play one another quite a bit, that’s a assure.” 

I’ve watched a number of of Alcaraz’s matches this season, particularly in the course of the North American hardcourt swing. Sufficient to admire his unbelievable expertise. And regardless that he didn’t play his finest on September 16 and racked up extra unforced errors than common, his tennis was nonetheless impressed sufficient to justify his No.1 standing. 

The match wasn’t the one spotlight of Auger-Aliassime’s Spanish marketing campaign. He joined forces with Vasek Pospisil to win the doubles battles towards South Korea and Spain and hand Canada its two deciding factors.  

To high issues off, Félix’s singles showdown towards Serbia on September 17 was a tennis clinic. Miomir Kecmanovic might have been 2-0 towards the Quebecer coming into the match, however the Serb was completely outplayed.  

That’s precisely the mindset Félix wants to search out his means again into the Prime 10.  

Subsequent up for him is the headline-grabbing Laver Cup from September 23 to 25.  

He and Crew World will battle for his or her very first win in 5 editions of the splashy match. Laver Cup is all the time a blowout and can be much more so this yr as its founder and star Roger Federer takes his final lap.  

The unstoppable Gabriela Dabrowski  

Nothing will get in Gabriela Dabrowski’s means. 

The Canadian doubles specialist simply added a brand-new title—her twelfth—to her trophy case.  

All in a day’s work? 

Not likely. Contemplate who she received with: Luisa Stefani of Brazil.  

Bear in mind her?  

Let’s rewind a couple of yr, to September 10, 2021. Dabrowski and Stefani versus Coco Gauff and Caty McNally of the US within the US Open semifinal.  

The intense knee harm Stefani suffered within the first set tiebreaker introduced the bout, and the pair’s hopes, to a crashing halt. 

Whereas her accomplice recovered, Gabriela performed on. In 2022, she teamed up with Giuliana Olmos of Mexico. After a number of first- and second-round losses in Australia and on the Arabian Peninsula, the pair discovered their rhythm, and issues actually took off: the finals in Madrid and Rome, the semis in Indian Wells, Berlin, San Jose and Toronto and the quarters in Eastbourne, Cincinnati and New York. 

With Stefani again in motion, the duo reunited and picked up the crown in Chennai. 

Dabrowski is at the moment No.10 in doubles. 

Yr after yr, she’s been the spine of her groups. 

Along with the wins she shares with Olmos and Stefani, she earned WTA titles with Shuko Aoyama (1) of Japan, Alicja Rosolska (1) of Poland, Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez of Spain (1) and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia. She’s had essentially the most success with the Yifan Xu of China. Collectively, they received 5 of the eight finals wherein they competed.  

And don’t neglect her Slams in blended doubles with Rohan Bopanna of India (Paris 2017) and Mate Pavic of Croatia (Melbourne 2018). 

Remind you of anybody? A doubles king who received quite a bit with a number of companions? 

Genie’s actual comeback 

After a number of hope, entries and postponements, Eugenie Bouchard lastly discovered her means again to tennis. 

No matter anybody’s expectations, her comeback is a convincing one. 

On the WTA 250 Chennai Open final week, she acquired so far as the quarters. The progress moved her up 382 spots within the rankings, from No.902 to No.520. 

However Chennai wasn’t her first go at it. She made her preliminary comeback in mid-August on the WTA 125 Odlum Brown VanOpen in Vancouver, the place she misplaced in two fast units to No.166 Arianne Hartono of the Netherlands (6-2, 6-2). Though she was enjoying on dwelling soil, this primary look didn’t yield the outcomes the Canadian hoped for. 

However in Chennai’s sweltering warmth, Bouchard was constant from the baseline, performed a fantastic defensive recreation and anticipated the ball nicely. 

Her first sufferer was No.167 Joanne Zuger of Switzerland, 7-6 (4), 6-2.  

Two days later, she confronted No.359 Karman Thandi of India, who’d upset No.109 Chloé Paquet of France within the first spherical. Genie closed issues out at 6-2, 7-6 (2). 

Her quarterfinal match was nice from a tennis standpoint however no enjoyable in any respect.  

In opposition to No.298 Nadia Podoroska of Argentina, who was ranked as excessive as No.47 simply 18 months in the past, Bouchard simply received the primary 6-1 however then let her rival again within the match and finally misplaced the subsequent two units 6-4, 6-2. Nonetheless, along with a 40-minute break on account of lightning, the excessive temperatures and humidity turned out to be her actual opponent, forcing her to name for a medical timeout. 

Regardless of the difficult situations, Bouchard performed her doubles match afterwards, nevertheless it was quite a bit to ask. She’d made it to the semis with Yanina Wickmayer Belgium however needed to drop out at 3-6, 1-1.  

This week, Genie stored the momentum going on the WTA 250 Hana Financial institution Korea Open in Seoul. Her first-round loss was an honourable one: she was toppled by 2022 Wimbledon semifinalist and World No.80 Tatjana Maria in two units, 7-6(5), 7-6(5).  

E mail: privard@tenniscanada.com