Felix Auger-Aliassime is one locked-in athlete right now. (ID 155693358
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Before this October, Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime was a very promising tennis player with major Top 10 potential. But he also had very few big wins.
He had made it to ten tournament finals … but lost all but one of them (in Rotterdam this past February). He went on big runs in Grand Slams, only to fall short at the quarter or semi-finals. No one could deny his quality.
He just needed to have a breakthrough.
Then October happened. And Felix was on fire.
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Felix lifts his third trophy of October. He is on a terrific 13-match winning streak. (Getty Embed)
Between October 13 and 30, he played 13 matches and he won them all, including a victory over Carlos Alcaraz, the world’s No.1 ranked player. That includes three finals. And that means he has won three tournaments—Florence, Antwerp, and Basel—in a row. Wow!
Suddenly, the Canuck is the hottest tennis player in the world right now. The breakthrough has arrived!
Powerhouse on his way to ATP Finals?
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Felix reflects after his tournament victory in Antwerp, Belgium. (Getty Embed)
Right now, Felix is in France, playing at a pretty big tournament—the Paris Masters. This is traditionally the last event of the tennis season, a final shot at glory before everyone takes about eight weeks off ahead of a new season in January.
Everyone, that is, except the very best.
The eight top players in the world get one more big show. They qualify for something called the ATP Finals. In this tournament, this great eight face-off head-to-head until one player emerges as the champ.
Six of the eight players—Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Novak Djokovic, and Daniil Medvedev—have already qualified. Only two spots remain. And guess who is in a great position to claim one of them?
Felix!
Perfect timing
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The wins have been sweet, but Felix can’t lose focus just yet! (Getty Embed)
In short, Felix’s exceptional run in October has all but guaranteed him a spot in the ATP Finals. Even if he loses his match tomorrow, he is highly likely to qualify.
Just appearing in the Finals would be a huge boost for his career. He would be only the second Canadian to qualify for the tournament, and the first since Milos Raonic in 2016. And given how well he’s been playing lately, why stop there? Why not win the whole thing?
Of course, he still has yet to qualify. A victory over Sweden’s Mikael Ymer on Wednesday will seal the deal. He’ll be hoping that his great October carries over into an even better November!
