Australian Open 2021: Félix Auger-Aliassime, Denis Shapovalov win to set up third round all-Canada clash

Jackie Spiegel

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Australian Open 2021: Félix Auger-Aliassime, Denis Shapovalov win to set up third round all-Canada clash image

After a run to the finals at the Murray River Open, Félix Auger-Aliassime continues to roll. The Montrealer posted a convincing 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 win over Aussie James Duckworth to advance to his first-ever Round of 32 at the Australian Open.

That's great, right? Well, he's now set to meet his buddy and countryman Denis Shapovalov in the third round. The Richmond Hill, Ont., native defeated another Aussie, Bernard Tomic, 6-1, 6-3, 6-2.

"It's not the first time, it's not the last time we're going to play," Auger-Aliassime said, noting that the duo has played in the Davis Cup and the 2020 ATP Cup together. "It's the same thing every time. We're teammates. ... Of course, now playing against each other — we've played also before in Grand Slams — it's a big opportunity for both of us. It's an important match. We're going to just compete as hard as we can."

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Canada's rising stars on the men's side have faced off three other times on the ATP Tour — 2019 in Madrid and twice at the U.S. Open — along with a few matches growing up in Canada.

"I think I first met him when I was 8," Auger-Aliassime said. "They took the best players under 12, and we had some, they call them national camps. I think that's the first time I met him in Toronto. He was already playing with an adult racquet, one-handed backhand at 9 years old. I remember it was pretty impressive the first time I saw him. I'm still impressed by what he does."

Shapovalov does hold a 2-1 record on the Tour against Auger-Aliassime, whose lone win was on clay in Spain. The 12th-ranked Shapovalov won both matches at New York's Grand Slam, albeit the first win was a walkover after Auger-Aliassime had to retire because of an elevated heartbeat.

"Excited to play Félix, but for me, it's just like any other match," Shapovalov said. "You know, sooner or later, you're going to run into Canadians in the draw. Canadians never want to play Canadians, but in the end, it happens so often we kind of treat it the same way."

Auger-Aliassime cruised through his match, firing off 19 aces and winning 81 percent of the points on his first serve. The 20-year-old, playing in his second career main draw in Melbourne, posted 38 winners with two coming on returns off Duckworth's serve. Was it his cleanest match? No, he did have 23 unforced errors (five more than his Aussie opponent) and 26 forced errors.

"I served well. I didn't face a breakpoint — that was key," the No. 20 seed (world No. 19) said post-match. "I'm able to protect my serve, I give myself opportunities. Then on the return, I was able to adapt well, change my position, mix things up, just create opportunities. It was a very complete match. 

"I can be happy with my performance."

As for Shapovalov, 21, his straight-set win was pretty easy aside from a few tense moments. While he needed just seven games and 23 minutes to win the opening set — with one of the best points coming off a running forehand approach shot that went cross-court into the open court — the second set was a bit more stressful.

In the first game, Shapovalov saved two break points before getting an ad-in he could not capitalize on. Tomic then had two more break points that the Canadian saved before he was able to close it out — a total of 14 points needed to go up 1-0.

Move ahead to Game No. 2. Shapovalov battled back from 40-15 to get things to deuce before saving four chances by Tomic to take the game. Shapovalov then had a chance but he hit an unforced error on a forehand approach shot. Then Tomic had two chances to win the game but Shapovalov staved those off before trading advantages that Tomic finally capitalized on. Twenty-four points later it was 1-1.

Game No. 3 was another doozy. The 21-year-old saved one break point and had five chances to close things out to Tomic's one — he double faulted on two separate game points — before winning points 19 and 20 of the game. After that, Shapovalov cruised through to take the match.

"I was just taking it one point at a time," said Shapovalov, who is ranked 12th and seeded 11th. "Obviously, I knew the games were long, but I wasn't trying to focus on them, like, how long they were. I was just trying to break, or on my serve, was trying to hold. Just focusing on the next point.

"That's tennis. That's what makes the sport interesting. It could be really quick games if you're Daniil Medvedev and serve four aces, but it could be also long if you're Denis or Bernard today," he said with a laugh.

Now the focus shifts for both players in what could be a career moment. Auger-Aliassime has only advanced once to a Grand Slam Round of 16; he did it at the 2020 U.S. Open, where he lost to eventual champ Dominic Thiem. Shapovalov, the elder statesman by about eight months, has his eyes on a trip to the quarterfinals for the second time at a Grand Slam. He bowed out in Flushing last September to Pablo Carreno Busta in five sets.

Jackie Spiegel