Prior to this week’s Internazionali BNL d’Italia, Felix Auger-Aliassime had not defeated a top-10 opponent since Queen’s Club in the summer of 2019 (Stefanos Tsitsipas). That changed during second-round action on Tuesday, when he upset world No. 10 Diego Schwartzman 6-1, 6-3.
Auger-Aliassime broke serve five times in six chances to prevail in just one hour and six minutes.
Neither player had been in good form heading into the Rome Masters, and the woes continued for Schwartzman. Auger-Aliassime perhaps benefited from having a match under his belt (d. Filip Krajinovic in the opening round), whereas Schwartzman earned a first-round bye as the No. 8 seed. The Argentine, who also lost his opening match at Masters 1000 events in Monte-Carlo and Madrid, never found the range in Rome–where he finished runner-up last fall. He was nothing short of hopeless on serve against Auger-Aliassime, losing more than half of the points even when he put his first delivery in play. Schwartzman double-faulted six times and won only four of 15 second-serve points.
Based on his own strong form and his struggling opponent, Auger-Aliassime had no trouble setting up a round of 16 showdown with either David Goffin or Federico Delbonis.
Day 3 highlights:
“It was tricky conditions overall,” the 21st-ranked Canadian commented. “A lot of rain; heavy conditions. I think maybe it suited me better. I think he was struggling to find openings on the court. I took advantage of that. I kept going for my shot with no hesitation, stuck to my game-plan. I was able to do that well outside of the little bit of slump in the second.
“Of course, Diego is a tough opponent always…. Most of the time players in the Top 10 are tough. For me it’s just two men trying to win. That’s really what it is.”
nice one, FAA
Not so nice,Shortman