Photo : @felixtennis/Samer Alrejjal
Forget showing up late to work or presenting a school project in your underwear, at this point Félix Auger-Aliassime’s nightmare is a certainly gangly man with short blond hair and long, skinny arms.
If you just look at scores, no there were no tech glitches. It’s just that the Canadian No. 1’s result last week was pretty much the same as the week before.
But while the Montrealer is looking to crack what’s proving to be a challenging case, a certain Czech woman appears to have solved the mystery that has been stumping most of the WTA Tour for a year.
Here’s what you need to know.
In Case You Missed It: What’s Krejcikova’s Secret
Another week, another continent, but the same result for Félix Auger-Aliassime.
For the second week in a row, the Canadian No. 1 was bounced from a tournament by Daniil Medvedev in straight sets. This time, it was in the semifinals of the ATP 250 event in Doha. He is now 0-6 against the former world No. 1.
Medvedev went on to win the title, defeating Andy Murray in the final. The Scot had won four straight three-set thrillers to reach the title match.
The first WTA 1000 event of the year took place last week in Dubai, with Barbora Krejcikova stunning the tennis world by defeating the world’s Top 3 players on her way to the title.
That included a straight-set win over world No. 1 Iga Świątek in the final. Krejcikova has now won back-to-back finals against the dominant Pole and is the only woman in the 2020s to beat Swiatek in a final, accounting of both of the world No. 1’s finals defeat since 2019.
Tough draws got the better of the Canadians as Bianca Andreescu bowed out in round one to Australian Open runner-up Elena Rybakina, while Leylah Annie Fernandez went down in round two to Świątek.
Read the full Dubai recap on the National Bank Open website.
A surprising result from the ATP Tour came at the 500-level event in Rio, where Cameron Norrie followed his compatriot’s lead from Doha by mounting an epic comeback to defeat Carlos Alcaraz for the title, despite trailing the match 5-7, 0-3. Alcaraz appeared to injure his thigh during the match.
Last Week’s Results
What to Watch: Third time’s the charm?
A lot would have to go right for Félix Auger-Aliassime to meet Daniil Medvedev for a third consecutive week.
The pair are on opposite sides of the draw at the ATP 500 event in Dubai. Auger-Aliassime is the fourth seed and is in the bottom half of the draw. He is in the same quarter as seventh seed Alexander Zverev and could meet defending champion Andrey Rublev, the second seed, in the semifinals.
First, the Canadian will need to get revenge on the serve-and-volleying Maxime Cressy, who knocked the Canadian out of Wimbledon in the first round last year.
Medvedev is seeded third and is in the top half of the draw with World No. 1 Novak Djokovic.
Denis Shapovalov is on this side of the Atlantic this week at the other ATP 500 event in Acapulco. He will be aiming to snap a three-match losing streak when he meets Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round.
No matter who he plays in the second round, the Canadian will have his hands full as he will meet either serve machine John Isner or third seed Taylor Fritz. They are in the top half of the draw with No. 1 seed Carlos Alcaraz.
Also competing in Acapulco is Casper Ruud, the second seed who is competing in his first event since the Australian Open, and last week’s Rio champion Cameron Norrie.
Absent from Acapulco is defending champion Rafael Nadal, who has been out since the Australian Open with an injury.
Rebecca Marino is the lone Canadian competing on the WTA Tour this week. She is in Monterrey, a WTA 250 event, and will play Fernanda Contreras Gomez in the first round. She could play fifth seed Lin Zhu in round two and second seed Marie Bouzkova in the quarter-finals.
World No. 5 Caroline Garcia is the top seed.
Read also: Sam Aliassime – Tennis Beyond Borders
Leylah Annie Fernandez is the two-time defending champion in Monterrey, but is not defending her title this week.
There are also 250 events in Santiago on the ATP Tour and Austin for the WTA.
Under the Radar:
Canada’s Stacey Fung was a champion last week on the ITF circuit, winning the title at the W25 event in Santo Domingo. She knocked off five consecutive seeded opponents, including the fourth seed in the second round and rallying from a set down to defeat the second seed in the final.
It is a sixth career ITF title for the 26-year-old and matches the biggest title of her career. She also won the W25 event in Fredericton, New Brunswick, in 2022. She has now won at least one title for three consecutive years.
Canada features on the ITF calendar this week with a W25 event taking place in Toronto at Sobeys Stadium.
A massive contingent of Canadians will be competing at the event, led by world No. 195 Katherine Sebov who is competing in her first event since making her Grand Slam debut on Rod Laver Arena at the Australian Open.
You can follow the Canadians in action every week here.
