The career of Felix Auger-Aliassime has hit a stretch of stagnation. The 22 year old ranked 10 in the world hasn’t been hot lately.
He lost his first matches in Rome this week – to qualifier Alexei Popyrin 64 46 75 and in Madrid to world no. 40 Dusan Lajovic 67 in the third. Felix is losing close matches to lower-ranked players he should be handling, which suggests a struggle with confidence.
Felix didn’t play Monte Carlo or Barcelona. In Miami he lost in his second match to Francisco Cerundolo 62 75 after barely edging Brazilian lefty Thiago Monteiro in his first match 76 76,
At Indian Wells Felix beat Pedro Martinez, Francisco Cerundolo, Tommy Paul before losing in the quarterfinals to Carlos Alcaraz 64 64.
Last year Felix beat Nadal, Djokovic and Carlos and won the Davis Cup and was ranked no. 6 in November. He looked in perfect position to lighting strike his way into the top 5, or even better, but that glorious ascent hasn’t happened in 2023 for the phenom from Montreal. Instead it’s been the Djokovic and Alcaraz show.
Maybe Felix is happy with the lifestyle of being ranked where he is and is lacking that burning desire obsession and “every match is life and death” drive to be “the best.”
Or perhaps Felix is progressing at his own casual, natural pace and is in no rush to win his first Grand Slam title or become no. 1.
Babolat · Felix Auger-Aliassime · Roma · Rome
Matt Segel · May 13, 2023 at 5:26 pm
How about this theory… Felix grew up on indoor hard and outdoor hard courts. His power would have been rewarded in those formative years while point construction would not have been even needed that often. His shots would have overwhelmed most players. In the pros he is better on fast surfaces (all titles on indoor hard) and struggles on slow courts because pro defenders make him hit many more shots giving him chances to miss. He is an enormous talent but will probably have to wait for grass and hard to get his mojo back.
Scoop Malinowski · May 13, 2023 at 7:48 pm
You convinced me with your analysis Matt, it also may show Uncle Toni is a fake coach for Felix, just some kind of business deal to promote himself and Rafa academy. You would think Toni would make Felix a better smarter player on clay.
catherine · May 14, 2023 at 1:47 am
I have’t seen Felix play that much but his serve often lets him down on the big occasion.
Not sure about the ‘fake’ – more likely Uncle Toni might have seemed a bright idea publicity wise at one point but not any more.
Canadian tennis promised so much but has been in a slump lately. Fernandez is struggling (curse of ’21), Shapalov looks as if he’s stalling and as for Bianca – she left Rome having won 1 game and now seems to be occupied in making videos about herself and her inner life.
Scoop Malinowski · May 14, 2023 at 7:43 am
Catherine, “fake coach” is a term thrown around in the tennis world. And what Uncle Toni is doing with Felix looks like a business deal more than anything, to get “free” promo for the academy via Felix. Right, Shapo, Leylah, Bibi and Raonic have all gone off track.
catherine · May 14, 2023 at 9:26 am
Swiatek bt Tsurenko 6-2 6-0 a while ago. Most of the time the crowd wasn’t clapping – it was just gaping.
Scoop Malinowski · May 14, 2023 at 12:31 pm
What are you alluding to Catherine? Italian crowds don’t adore Iga?
catherine · May 15, 2023 at 1:37 am
No = they were just gobsmacked at Iga’s level of play.
Things have improved – years ago you couldn’t drag an Italian crowd to watch women’s tennis.
catherine · May 15, 2023 at 1:42 am
Caroline Garcia broke down in tears in her press conference in Rome: “I sank on my own. I’m making the effort, but it doesn’t work. I’d like to know why, to be able to control it. But no, it’s sinking me more & more. Instead to enjoy the moment on court, it becomes a nightmare”
What’s happening with these women ?
Scoop Malinowski · May 15, 2023 at 6:39 am
When is Garcia taking a break for mental health?
Scoop Malinowski · May 15, 2023 at 6:40 am
Catherine, The Romans loved to see Capriati and Sabatini play, for obvious reasons. I saw that Graf only played Rome once in 1996 and lost in QF. Any idea why Graf only played Rome once?
catherine · May 15, 2023 at 9:30 am
Ha ha – the rumour was Steffi felt insulted by some comments made by Italians when she was in Rome – noted her supposed facial resemblance to a potato. Unsurprisingly she vowed never to return.
Of course they liked Capriati and Sabatini – Italian by descent. Steffi being German was a different dish of spaghetti.
Whole thing was pretty silly really. And Rome never ranked high in thóse days fór the WTA. One year it was played in Perugia.
Scoop Malinowski · May 15, 2023 at 9:45 am
Thanks for those details Catherine, I now remember that potato swipes. But that was far softer than Martina Navratilova saying Monica Seles grunting sounded like “a stuck pig.” I thought Rome was one of the favorite destinations for all pro players, the Foro Italico stadium and of course the Italian cuisine.