Felix Auger-Aliassime's time is still to come.
Playing in the second tournament final of his career, the Canadian teen fell to world No. 51 Benoit Paire 6-4, 6-3 at the 2019 Lyon Open.
French Open 2019: Nick Kyrgios withdraws with illness after saying event 'sucks'
Paire's advantage came in his return game. He won nearly half of the points on Auger-Aliassime's serve and was completely in control of his own serve. The Frenchman won 72 percent of his service points and only allowed one break point opportunity.
LYON ATP 250: Felix Auger-Aliassime loses 6-3, 6-4 to Benoit Paire in the final. In p.c. after said his groin injury got worse after 1st set. He thought about stopping but didn't want to ruin Paire's win. He said they will decide in next few days if he can play Roland Garros. pic.twitter.com/L0Uz0lTur9
— Tom Tebbutt (@tomtebbutt) May 25, 2019
Paire's strong return play forced the 18-year-old to play 25 more service points than his opponent. The Canadian had been dealing with injury problems throughout the tournament and said he was pleased with his play regardless.
"I had a good week even though it didn’t end the way I wanted, not playing the way I wanted or being physically well," Auger-Aliassime told reporters after the match. "There’s disappointment because these finals don’t come around often but there’s a lot of positives to take from that week. Hopefully, I give myself other chances for titles."
- First ATP Final (Rio de Janeiro)
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 25, 2019
- First ATP Masters 1000 SF (Miami)
- Rises to career-high ranking of No. 22
What a year @felixtennis is having 🙌 pic.twitter.com/0Nt6a37p04
The second place finish still reaps positives for Auger-Aliassime, as it will move him up six spots in the ATP rankings from No. 28 to No. 22. He'll have to shake off the loss quickly and heal up as much as he can because he squares off with Jordan Thompson in the first round of the French Open on May 27.