Felix Auger-Aliassime sends a message to his title rivals in Paris: “I think I’ll have enough energy to wrap up the tournament”

When Felix Auger-Aliassime arrived in Paris for the start of the Rolex Paris Masters, he was physically and mentally tired, not surprising given that he has won three tournaments in the past three weeks.

Victories in Florence, Antwerp and Basel put him on his way to securing a place in the season-ending ATP Finals but when he took on Mikael Ymer in the second round he found himself in big trouble, trailing by a set and 4-1, with the Swede holding a point for 5-1.

Just in time, the Canadian woke up, his confidence enough to get the job done in a third-set tiebreak. Even against Gilles Simon, the Frenchman’s last ever match, he didn’t feel great but his confidence got him through that and on Friday, when he outplayed Frances Tiafoe to extend his winning streak to 16 matches.

He’ll take on Danish teenager Holger Rune in the semi-finals after world No 1 Carlos Alcaraz retired with a side injury.

“As for the last days, well, the last round, it was difficult,” he said after reaching his first Masters 1000 semi-final since Miami in 2019. “Yesterday when I woke up before playing, I didn’t feel in the best of shape. But when you arrive on the court you try to give the best and I found the energy to play.

“But from now on, I feel better and I think I’ll have the right energy to wrap up the tournament.”

Confidence carrying Auger-Aliassime through

That’s bad news for his rivals, if he can replicate the kind of form that took him to three straight titles in the past three weeks, a turnaround in fortunes for a man who lost his first eight ATP Finals before winning his first in Rotterdam earlier this year.

“Well, my confidence is based on concrete things,” he said. “First of all, I need to have discipline and preparation in the way I play. Each match I approach it in the same way.

“There should be both confidence but also humility because I may lose as well. That allows me to be ready for any kind of scenario, any kind of match that can unroll. I will continue with that same set mindset.

“As we saw at the end, when we feel confident, this is what happens. Even when there is a lot of tension at 15-30, 30-All, there is an important point, and I managed to find the right hit at the right moment, to be poised in my body, in my mind. I needed to be robust in my level of play.

“I feel now that there are (fewer) errors. I served well. My forehand is good. But now my return, my backhand, my dropshots, I managed to mix up my level of play, and I can count on it now.”

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