Félix Auger-Aliassime wins Adelaide International title

Félix Auger-Aliassime is off to his best start to a season in years. The Canadian defeated American Sebastian Korda at the Adelaide International final on Saturday.

Seeded fifth, Auger-Aliassime battled past the second-seeded Korda, securing a hard-earned 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 victory after one hour and 49 minutes of play. This win marks the Montréal native’s sixth ATP Tour title and his first on outdoor hard courts.

“It feels great, any title feels amazing,” said Auger-Aliassime. “I’ve had my fair share of difficulty to win titles in the beginning of my career, and now every one means a lot. To show that I can play well on other surfaces, to get over that hump and win a first title outdoors, is great.”

“Most importantly, thank you to my team, my group, my dad. Thank you for everything. Thank you also to my family back home, my fiancée and her family. It’s the best support you can have as a player. I enjoy working everyday with you all. Let’s push to have a great year.”

Despite committing 61 unforced errors in his semifinal win, Auger-Aliassime reduced his error count to just 21 against Korda in the final. The Canadian saved four break points across his first three service games before settling into his rhythm in his 16th tour-level final. A flicked forehand winner to open the sixth game helped him notch the first break of the match, and Auger-Aliassime reeled off 17 of the final 21 points to take the opening set.

Korda, playing his first tournament since undergoing elbow surgery in October, fought back with a gusty second set, saving two break points to keep the match alive. However, Auger-Aliassime quickly made amends and regained his momentum with a clinical display in the decider, where he won 93 per cent (13/14) of first-serve points.

Auger-Aliassime is now on a five-match win streak which began with last week’s victory over World No. 4 Taylor Fritz at the United Cup. His run continued at the Australian Open warm-up tournament in Adelaide, an ATP 250 event, defeating Frenchman Arthur Cazaux, and Americans Marcos Giron and Tommy Paul en route to the final.

In Friday’s semifinal, Auger-Aliassime battled through nearly three hours to overcome the tournament’s top seed, Tommy Paul, in three sets. The Canadian held firm after an early break to score a 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-4 win. Earlier, in the quarterfinals, he edged Giron in two sets, winning 7-6(3), 6-3. 

Now, Auger-Aliassime heads to Melbourne for the Australian Open, where he will face Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff in the first round.