Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime will take on American Sebastian Korda for a chance at his third title this year, while Korda is still looking for his first tournament win of the season.
After a hot start to the 2022 season, Felix Auger-Aliassime came up short in the majors. His best result was at the Australian Open, where he made the quarterfinals. Otherwise, he was unable to make the business end of the slams. He had dismal showings at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open–where he lost in the first and second rounds, respectively. The Canadian has had notable difficulty in finals until this year. He is 2-9 lifetime in tour-level finals, only just getting over the finish line for the first time in Rotterdam earlier this winter, and then again last week in Florence.
Korda seemed to be headed for early success, as well. The 22-year-old burst onto the scene in 2020, coming out of nowhere to make the round of 16 at the French Open. He won his first title in 2021, but midway through the season last year the American lost his way. A bout with COVID-19, a foot injury, and a slight mental walkabout plagued Korda since last year’s Wimbledon–but he seems to have righted the ship.
Like his final opponent, Korda comes goes into Sunday’s match off a successful tournament last week. He made the final in Gijon, where he lost in straight sets to Andrey Rublev.
Auger-Aliassime and Korda have played twice before. They split their wins, with Korda winning their last encounter earlier this season on the clay courts of Estoril. The American should have enough confidence to make the Canadian work for his third title of the season, but Auger-Aliassime will likely pull this one out.
Cheryl pick: Auger-Aliassime in 3
Ricky pick: Auger-Aliassime in 3
WWW?