Félix Auger-Aliassime secured a spot in the Paris Masters tennis tournament semifinals, earning valuable points towards qualifying for the ATP Finals. He clinched a 6-2, 6-2 victory over wildcard entrant Valentin Vacherot of Monaco, setting up a showdown with 13th-seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan in the next round.
This triumph over the formidable Vacherot brought Auger-Aliassime within 90 points of Lorenzo Musetti in the race for the final spot at the upcoming ATP Finals in Turin, Italy. Should Auger-Aliassime win in the semifinals, he would surpass the Italian, who was eliminated in the second round in Paris.
Auger-Aliassime had been enduring tough three-set matches and tiebreaks leading up to the quarterfinals, while Vacherot boasted a 10-match winning streak at the ATP 1000 level, having recently claimed victory in Shanghai. However, the ninth-seeded Auger-Aliassime upped his game against Vacherot, showcasing an impressive performance. He dominated with an 89% first-serve points won rate and saved both break points he faced.
Reflecting on his match, Auger-Aliassime remarked on the challenge of facing a confident opponent like Vacherot. Despite feeling some apprehension, he maintained focus and intensity from the start, leading to a strong display of tennis throughout the match. Auger-Aliassime limited Vacherot to just 6 out of 39 return points and capitalized on his opportunities by winning 49% of his own returns and breaking his opponent four times.
Auger-Aliassime aims to secure his ninth career title and achieve his first victory at the Masters level. In another quarterfinal match, Bublik secured a surprise win over sixth-seed Alex de Minaur of Australia in a 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-5 battle. Auger-Aliassime holds a 3-2 career record against Bublik.
Switching to the women’s competition, Canadians Victoria Mboko and Leylah Fernandez are set to clash in the semifinals of the Hong Kong Open after both triumphed in their quarterfinal matches. Fernandez, seeded second, defeated Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-4, 6-4, while Mboko, seeded third, advanced with a 6-1, 3-1 walkover against Russian player Anna Kalinskaya.
The winner of the Mboko-Fernandez semifinal will face the victor of the match between Spain’s Cristina Bucsa and Australia’s Maya Joint, ranked 68th and 32nd in the world, respectively. Mboko and Fernandez are currently ranked 21st and 22nd in the women’s tennis rankings.