Felix Auger-Aliassime has returned to winning ways at one of his favorite venues, the Swiss Indoors Basel, just when he needed it most.
The two-time champion defeated Marin Cilic 7-6(2), 7-6(2) on Thursday to book a spot in the quarterfinals of the ATP 500 while boosting his hopes of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals. A year ago, Auger-Aliassime lost in the second round to eventual champion Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard for his only defeat in his first three appearances in Basel. Twelve months later, the 2022 and 2023 champion made no mistake against Cilic in the same stage.
Auger-Aliassime defeated the Croatian former world number 3 with 38 winners to 21, leveling the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 3-3. Although both sets went to tiebreaks, it was the fifth-seeded Canadian who finished stronger each time, completing a victory lasting one hour and 47 minutes.
With the race for the remaining Nitto ATP Finals nearing its climax, Auger-Aliassime could hardly have picked a more pivotal moment to string together a six-match winning streak on Europe’s indoor hard courts. After clinching his third ATP 250 title of the season in Brussels on Sunday, the Canadian has now defeated two tough, big opponents, Gabriel Diallo and Cilic, to reach the last eight in Basel.
The 25-year-old Auger-Aliassime remains ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, but he is hot on the heels of those above him. He is just 400 points behind seventh-seeded Alex de Minaur (who advances to the Vienna quarter-finals this week) and 290 points behind Lorenzo Musetti (who is also alive in the Vienna draw).
Another Turin hopeful, sixth-ranked Ben Shelton, was unable to secure a quarter-final showdown with Auger-Aliassime in Basel. Jaume Munar upset the 2024 finalist 6-3, 6-4 for the fourth Top 10 victory of his career. Munar has now won all three of his Lexus ATP Head2Head matches with Shelton in 2025 (Dallas, Rome, Basel).
Denis Shapovalov was again the winner of the second round early on Thursday. The Canadian defeated Valentin Royer 7-6(3), 6-2 to book a quarter-final against #NextGenATP star Joao Fonseca.
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