Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime continued his dominant run in the ongoing US Open as he defeated Andrey Rublev in straight sets at the Arthur Ashe Stadium, New York on Monday. The Canadian registered a 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 win to seal his berth in the quarter-finals of the New York Major.
Felix advanced to the next round after wrapping up the match in two-hour, 16-minute despite conceding an early break. However, the 25th seed was able to lift his game and Rublev had no answers.
“Today is my first time playing on Arthur Ashe [Stadium] in a few years and I think it feels even better than the first time,” said Auger-Aliassime, who reached the 2021 semi-finals in New York. “At 21, I was on my way up. I had a few setbacks, injuries, struggles with [my] confidence. Then to come back the second time in the quarter-finals here, it feels much better, more deserved.”
Felix smashed 42 winners as compared to Rublev’s 22 and revealed he stayed composed in crunch situations.
“To keep my cool and to be more calm and poised [when] finishing the match was the key,” said Auger-Aliassime. “I had many tough battles with Andrey in the past. Sometimes I would be up, like I was today, and he would come back. So it was very important for me to stay ahead and to keep putting pressure all the way until the last point.”
On the other hand, Australia’s Alex de Minaur defeated World No. 435 Leandro Riedi 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 in one hour, 33 minutes to book his quarterfinals place.
“I’m super proud of what I’m doing,” De Minaur said. “Ultimately, this is where I want to be, playing for the big titles, I want to be in contention. I’m putting myself in the right places. I’ve got another great opportunity coming up in the quarter-finals, I’m gonna go out and have a swing.”
Felix will face Alex de Minaur on Wednesday.
