Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime marked his successful comeback to the court by defeating Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas with a score of 6-3, 7-5 in the second round of the Cincinnati Open on Sunday. Despite being seeded second at the Masters-level event, Auger-Aliassime faced challenges with the windy conditions during the match. He initially struggled to close out the match at 5-4 but managed to bounce back by breaking Tsitsipas and eventually securing victory with his seventh ace on match point.
Speaking about the match, Auger-Aliassime mentioned the difficulties posed by the wind, especially affecting his serve power. However, he expressed relief at making a successful comeback after a 40-day break from playing, following his absence since Wimbledon. The Canadian player acknowledged the tough health challenges he faced in recent weeks but expressed his happiness at returning with a notable win.
Auger-Aliassime’s victory over Tsitsipas marked only the fourth win out of 11 matches against the Greek player throughout his career. Up next, the Canadian will be facing Juan Cerundolo of Argentina, who recently caused an upset by defeating the 25th seed Arthur Rinderknech of France in a closely contested match.
In the women’s event, qualifier Xiyu Wang from China secured a victory over 30th-seeded Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., with a score of 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 in a match lasting two hours and two minutes. Despite a slow start, Wang showcased a strong performance in the second set and maintained her momentum throughout the match, finishing with 23 winners and 35 unforced errors. Fernandez, who had a notable run to the round of 16 at the National Bank Open in Toronto, struggled with her performance against Wang, winning only three out of 12 return games.