Canadian tennis players Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov advanced to the semifinals of their respective ATP 250 tournaments with victories on Friday.
Montreal’s Auger-Aliassime advanced to the last four of the European Open with a 6-2, 7-6 (6) victory over American qualifier Eliot Spizzirri.
Shapovalov, from Richmond Hill, Ont., won his Stockholm Open quarterfinal against Swedish wildcard Elias Ymer 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-1.
In Brussels, Auger-Aliassime won when he took the second set tiebreak with his eleventh ace of the match.
The second-seeded Canadian romped through the first set, breaking Spizzirri’s serve twice while not facing a break point himself.
Spizzirri proved a much stronger opponent in the second set and had two set points in Game 12 before Auger-Aliassime completed the watch with an ace to level the frame at 6-6.
The American then led the tiebreak 5-3, but Auger-Aliassime won four of the next five points.
The 25-year-old Auger-Aliassime, who entered the tournament at 13th place in the world rankings, will face Belgian wildcard Raphael Collignon in the semi-finals.
Shapovalov, ranked third in Stockholm, pulled away from Ymer by winning the last five games of the third set.
The world number 23 will next face second seed Casper Ruud of Norway. The 26-year-old Shapovalov defeated Ruud earlier this year in the final of the Dallas Open.
At the Japan Women’s Open in Osaka, Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., was scheduled to face Romania’s Sorana Cirstea in the semifinals Saturday morning (Friday evening ET).
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