NEXT GEN COME TO THE PARTY
AFTER an opening round of abject failure, the next generation of men’s tennis finally came to the Wimbledon party, led by 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime.
The Canadian had not played a professional match on grass this time last month but now finds himself in the third round and fifth favourite for the title. The kid from Montreal is doing his best to depress the expectations.
‘Obviously there’s a bit of pressure,’ said the No 19 seed after beating 20-year-old French qualifier Corentin Moutet 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. ‘But for me to win my first Grand Slam match and already people are talking about me going far, it’s very odd.’
He will be a hot favourite against France’s Ugo Humbert tomorrow. Win that and the likely reward will be a first meeting with No 1 seed Novak Djokovic.
Auger-Aliassime is the latest talent to be anointed as the next big thing by a sport in cold sweats over what will happen when Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic retire and take their millions of fans with them.
This was thought to be an event where the youngsters would forge ahead but rising stars Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas made tearful, miserable first-round exits. The early evidence is that the third member of the next generation’s holy trinity is a more phlegmatic character.
‘I could sense for Stefanos and Zverev, it’s difficult because they have done great things already,’ said Auger-Aliassime (below). ‘They’re so young. But at the same time, there is extreme pressure on them to play well in the Slams.
‘I don’t try to add extra pressure from the outside. You just have to learn how to deal with it. You can’t escape it. You can’t hide from it.’ AugerAliassime appears to have no holes in his game. At 6ft 4in, he has a beefy serve but moves with remarkable fleet of foot. He hits hard and deep on both sides and showcased his volleying skills in an entertaining contest on Court 3.
He saved 12 of 14 break points and showed impressive timing by breaking in the first game of the second, third and fourth sets.
Auger-Aliassime is the youngest player to reach the third round of Wimbledon since 2011. If he needs a cautionary tale, he should look no further than the man who made that run.
Bernard Tomic was the toast of Wimbledon as he reached the quarters. But he has never been that far at a Grand Slam since and on Tuesday the world No 96 was thrashed in 58 minutes and faces his second fine in three years for lack of effort.
Auger-Aliassime has some company in the third round after two other up-and-comers scored impressive wins. Tenth seed Karen Khachanov, 23, brought his bruising brand of tennis to bear in a four-set win against Queen’s Club singles and doubles champion Feliciano Lopez.
And the tall tale of 21-yearold Reilly Opelka continued as the 6ft 11in American, playing in his first main draw of Wimbledon, upset No 22 seed Stan Wawrinka 8-6 in the fifth set. The Floridian has good memories of the All England Club, having won the juniors event in 2015. At the other end of the experience scale, only Jimmy Connors now stands in front of Djokovic for the most consecutive third-round appearances at Wimbledon.
The world No1 wasted precious little energy against Denis Kudla, winning 6-3, 6-2, 6-2.