In an electrifying Thursday at the Swiss Indoors, Canadian stars Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov cruised into the quarterfinals with impressive straight-set victories.
Defending champion Auger-Aliassime, who claimed titles in both 2022 and 2023, unleashed a stunning 28 aces to secure a hard-fought 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5) win over Croatia’s Marin Cilic.
The talented Montreal player dominated, winning 96% of his first serve points without facing a single break point throughout the match.
This victory marks Auger-Aliassime’s sixth consecutive win indoors, following his recent triumph at the Brussels Open. As the fifth seed, he eyes a coveted spot at the ATP Finals in Turin.
On the other hand, Shapovalov delivered a stellar performance, defeating France’s Valentin Royer 7-6 (5), 6-2 while unleashing 11 aces.
Hailing from Richmond Hill, Ont., Shapovalov managed to break his opponent three times, winning 76% of points on his first serve.
Up next for Shapovalov is a match against Brazil’s Joao Fonseca, while Auger-Aliassime will face unseeded Jaume Munar of Spain, who pulled off a surprising upset against second-seed American Ben Shelton with a score of 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday.
Should both win their quarterfinal matches, fans can anticipate an exhilarating all-Canadian semifinal showdown between Auger-Aliassime and Shapovalov.
