In a thrilling second-round encounter at the Terra Wortmann Open, Montreal’s Félix Auger-Aliassime narrowly escaped an upset, battling back for a victory against Learner Tien from the United States with scores of 6-7 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (5) on Wednesday.
As the tournament’s second seed, Auger-Aliassime found himself down 4-1 and 5-3 in the tense third-set tiebreaker but showcased remarkable resilience, clinching the match with four consecutive points after two hours and 31 minutes of fierce competition.
The match was incredibly competitive, despite Auger-Aliassime’s commanding serve. He fired off 22 aces and won a staggering 88 percent of his first-serve points.
Opportunities for break points were rare, with Auger-Aliassime converting two and Tien managing just one. However, Auger-Aliassime’s crucial break of serve to take a 6-5 lead in the second set proved pivotal in a highly charged match.
A defeat to world No. 19 Tien at the ATP 500 event would have jeopardized Auger-Aliassime’s highest-ever ranking of No. 4, especially with No. 5 Alex de Minaur and No. 6 Ben Shelton still in contention in other tournaments this week.
Instead, a quarterfinal triumph in Halle over Frances Tiafoe will help solidify his ranking as he progresses deeper into the grass-court season.
Auger-Aliassime maintains an unbeaten record of 3-0 against Tiafoe, although their last encounter was at the Paris Masters quarterfinals back in 2022.
