Auger-Aliassime Denies Paul to Reach Adelaide Final

Photo : Mark Brake

Félix Auger-Aliassime is off to his best start to a season in years and will have a chance to lift a trophy in his first regular ATP Tour event of 2025 after beating top seed Tommy Paul in the semifinals of the Adelaide International on Friday in three sets.

Paul was bidding to reach the Top 10 of the ATP rankings by reaching the Adelaide final but Auger-Aliassime had other ideas. The Canadian refused to go away and saved his most clutch tennis for the final set, hanging on to an early break to score a 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-4 win.

Just like his quarter-final victory, Auger-Aliassime relied heavily on his serve in the semis, winning 74 per cent of his first-serve points. However, this match was not so much about the number of points won as which points, as Paul actually broke serve more times and won more points overall.

“It was a battle. It was about physical effort, mental effort. A match with lots of ups and downs,” said Auger-Aliassime in his post-match on-court interview. “I feel like it was not the best level from both the players, Tommy and myself, but sometimes matches are like this, you have to battle with what you have and find a way through and I’m really happy that I did today.”

The first six games of the match were straight-forward holds for the servers before the pair exchanged breaks, still finding themselves knotted at 4-all. Paul had a chance to break for the set at 4-5 when a nice return drew an error for 30-40 but Auger-Aliassime was up to the task, finishing off a thrilling rally with a neat forehand volley.

Paul made the first move in the tiebreak, coaxing a backhand error out of the Canadian to score a minibreak for 2-1. However, the rest was all Auger-Aliassime. He won the next two points on the American’s serve courtesy of some nervy misses by Paul to turn the deficit into a 3-2 advantage, a minibreak lead he never relinquished. The Canadian won six of the last seven points, dominating with his big hitting and winning all of his remaining service points with unreturnable serves, to take the opening set.

The momentum carried into the second for Auger-Aliassime as he broke for a 2-0 lead. But just like the first set, he was unable to consolidate as the American broke right back. Then the next time the Montrealer stepped up to the line, Paul kept up the pressure and was rewarded with a second break of the set when Auger-Aliassime netted a midcourt forehand.

Unlike the times he had broken, the Canadian was unable to respond as Paul consolidated for a 4-2 lead and never let Auger-Aliassime back in the set. He broke again in the final game to send the match to a decider.

Auger-Aliassime wasted no time in turning the tables at the start of the final set. He came out crushing the ball in Paul’s opening service game and the American struggled to handle the Canadian’s pace, committing three straight errors to go down love-40. On the third break point, he punched a forehand long off a clever drop shot by Auger-Aliassime to hand the Montrealer a break in the opening game.

That was all Auger-Aliassime needed. While he never had a chance to add a second break, the Canadian was able to ride his early advantage through the final set. He did have to save a trio of break points in the sixth game, but he was able to blast his way out of the jam. Serving out the match at 5-4 was also a bit tricky as he let a 40-love lead slip away but at the fourth time of asking, he put away a smash to punch his ticket to the final.

When jokingly asked during his post-match interview if he “could have been a little nicer” because Paul needed to win to get into the Top 10, Auger-Aliassime quipped with a smile, “Is that so? Well he didn’t tell me that before the match. I’m not sure I would have given it to him still, but he for sure deserves it.”

Standing between Auger-Aliassime and a sixth career title will be another American, Sebastian Korda. The Canadian leads their head-to-head 2-1, with his two victories coming in their only two hard court meetings, both in straight sets including the 2022 Antwerp final. Auger-Aliassime has already beaten the top two Americans in the ATP rankings in the 2025 season, Paul on Friday and world No. 4 Taylor Fritz at the United Cup.

Tickets for the Davis Cup Qualifiers 1^st Round tie between Canada and Hungary are now on sale. Join us February 1 and 2 at IGA Stadium in Montreal, as the Canadian team begins their quest for the 2025 Davis Cup Final 8. To access tickets at early-bird pricing, click here.

Written By

Pete Borkowski