Master of Paris Auger-Aliassime continues his momentum, Alcaraz eliminated from the start

(Paris) Félix Auger-Aliassime continued his momentum started last week in Basel by easily defeating Jan-Lennard Struff 7-6 (3), 6-4 in the second round of the Paris Tennis Masters on Tuesday.

Auger-Aliassime concluded the duel presented at the Palais omnisports de Bercy after one hour and 38 minutes. Auger-Aliassime successfully defended his title in Basel, Switzerland last weekend and now has five career ATP Tour titles.

The Quebecer will now meet seventh seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, who obtained a bye for the second round.

It was the third career clash between Auger-Aliassime and Struff, 27^e world racket. The two tennis players had shared the honors of the two previous duels, presented in 2020.

Auger-Aliassime and Struff engaged in a very tough duel, especially in the first round.

Both players held serve throughout the first set, before Auger-Aliassime quickly took a 6-1 lead in the tiebreaker.

The 23-year-old tennis player sealed the outcome of the round shortly after, going to the net to deliver an unstoppable drop shot. The first round thus ended after 48 minutes of play.

Auger-Aliassime kept up the pressure at the start of the second set, giving Struff a lot of trouble before he finally won the point on serve after almost 15 minutes. The Quebecer came back to attack in the fourth game, and this time he hit the mark against the German to take the lead 3-1.

Carried by an excellent return of service game, incisive shots and great aggression, Auger-Aliassime continued on his way to bring the score to 5-4. He then sealed the outcome of the match on serve with the second of his three match points, following a long rally.

Auger-Aliassime totaled 17 aces, compared to seven for Struff, and he dominated his opponent 41-22 in winning shots. His only missteps occurred on double faults (5-3) and unforced errors (12-8), where he was more generous than Struff.

In the other matches on Tuesday, world No.2 Carlos Alcaraz was surprised from the outset by the Russian from qualifying Roman Safiullin (45^e) 6-3, 6-4 in the second round on Tuesday.

Alcaraz, exempt from the first round, returned to the competition after giving up playing in Basel the previous week, with a sore left foot and back. It now remains for the young Spaniard, who has not lifted a trophy since his epic coronation at Wimbledon at the expense of Novak Djokovic in July, to honor as best as possible the last major meeting of the season, the Masters which will bring together the eight best players in the world in Turin (Italy).

“I still have a little discomfort in the sole of my foot, it’s not 100% resolved, but […] it’s much less present than before,” admitted “Carlitos” on Monday.

“It’s the end of the season, which has been very long, demanding, it’s normal for problems to appear, we have to deal with them, play as best as possible while managing these problems,” he added.

With his initial defeat, Alcaraz is not doing well in his duel with Novak Djokovic for the throne of world No.1 at the end of the season.

Alcaraz had a break in the lead in both sets on Tuesday evening (2-1 in the first, 3-1 in the second), but each time, visibly lacking in pep, he allowed Safiullin to come back. And the resistance of the 26-year-old Russian, quarter-finalist at Wimbledon in July, ended up getting the better of him.

Alexander Zverev and Hubert Hurkacz remained in the hunt for one of the last three spots available for the ATP Finals after winning their second-round match.

Zverev, 10^e top seed, came from behind to defeat Hungarian Marton Fucsovics 4-6, 7-5 and 6-4, while Hurkacz, finalist in Basel last weekend, took the measure of American Sebastian Korda 6-3, 6-7 (6) and 6-3.

“It’s been a real roller coaster,” admitted Hurkacz, 11^e seeded after his victory. I tried a reset, to change my energy level in the third set. I was aware of the importance of this match, and I gave everything I had left in the tank. »

Before the Paris Masters, Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Jannik Sinner and Andrey Rublev had all already qualified for the ATP Finals, the last tournament of the season which will bring together the eight best players in the world in Turin, in Italy, from November 12 to 19.

In the other matches on the program, Dusan Lajovic defeated Benjamin Bonzi 7-5, 6-3, while Tomas Martin Etcheverry defeated Miomir Kecmanovic 4-6, 7-6 (6) and 6-4. This victory set the table for a duel against Djokovic, the tournament favorite.

with Agence France-Presse