It is one thing to establish good control of the ball in play when Frances Tiafoe is crunching forehands from the opposite end of Arthur Ashe Stadium. But as Felix Auger-Aliassime discovered on Sunday night, it was the ball which kept falling from his own pocket that really compounded matters.
Auger-Aliassime ultimately prevailed for his maiden US Open quarter-final berth 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(6), 6-4, but not before the change in rhythm on serve to avoid any threat of a point penalty for hindrance. A new pair of shorts with deeper pockets may be on the cards for the 21-year-old Canadian ahead of his quarter-final clash with Carlos Alcaraz.
“Probably, probably,” he joked in an interview with ESPN. “It happened to me once in Cincinnati for the first time in my life – now twice here. It’s actually crazy and at some point I forgot to only take one [ball] because it’s my rhythm for my whole life.
“[At] one point I was actually holding the ball, hitting forehands and holding the ball in my pocket because it was actually about to go out. It was crazy, I had to really think about it before every time I served… Somehow I was able to stay focused. I’m glad I did it, because it would have been tricky.”
It marked the second straight major Auger-Aliassime had progressed as far, after his run at Wimbledon. And there was added cause for celebration among his compatriots after 19-year-old Leylah Fernandez earlier backed up her defeat of defending women’s champion Naomi Osaka to beat Angelique Kerber for her first Grand Slam quarter-final.
It was the first time in the Open Era a Canadian man and woman reached singles quarter-finals at the same US Open. “It’s amazing. Not only is she a great player, she has a great heart, she’s a great person,” Auger-Aliassime said.
“We had a good time at the [Tokyo] Olympics, Team Canada together, so I’m happy that a few weeks later we’re here again playing some good tennis and I’m really proud of her for what she’s done. Hopefully she’ll go really far.”
There was pride in simply sharing Arthur Ashe Stadium with Tiafoe in prime time on Sunday night. Regardless of the result, Auger-Aliassime was pleased two black men were able to honour Ashe’s legacy.
“It’s great… We’ve come a long way, Frances and I,” Auger-Aliassime told ESPN. “Our families have tough backgrounds, both of us.
“So for us to be able to be here today to bring new faces to tennis, to inspire hopefully kids in New York but also all over the world, I hope we’ll see many new faces in the future in tennis. I’m happy that Frances and I can be part of that group inspiring others.”
Source Tennis – ATP World Tour
