Carlos Alcaraz was spectacularly defeated by Felix Auger-Aliassime in the Swiss Indoors semifinals.
In the Swiss Indoors semifinal match in Basel, Felix Auger-Aliassime severely defeated world No. 1 Carlos Alacaraz 6-3, 6-2. The No. 3 seed extended an impressive 12-game win streak with a commanding third straight victory over Alcaraz to advance to the final.
After this dominant performance against the most intriguing young player in the game, Auger-Aliassime will be the overwhelming favorite to add another trophy on Sunday in Basel. He has won back-to-back tour-level victories in Florence and Antwerp.
In the early stages of his existence, Auger-Aliassime began ominously with strong early grips. In his first four service games, the Canadian star lost only two points, and Alcaraz had no response.
On his own serve, Alcaraz lacked some conviction, and Auger-Aliassime frequently looked like he would break. The Spaniard appeared frazzled, and Auger-Aliassime exuded the aura of a man determined to eliminate his 12th consecutive foe.
Off the court, the gifted pair—the future of men’s tennis—are great friends and practice partners, but Auger-Aliassime was merciless in a brilliant opening set. With a genuine show of diversified serving, the 22-year-old carried out his plan to the letter and left his opponent reeling.
In the fourth service game, Alcaraz was eventually broken, and Auger-Aliassime quickly advanced on his own serve to win the opening set 6-3 in a remarkable 39 minutes. As a result of his opponent’s tenacious defense, the uncharacteristically overmatched US Open champion Alcaraz was limited to just one victory during the entire set.
Additionally, the single point Alcaraz earned on his own second serve indicated Auger-full Aliassime’s dominance in every facet of a first set of the highest caliber. After breaking again and taking an early lead in the second, Auger-Aliassime, who had been motivated, put together what is possibly the finest return game of the entire tournament. He won four straight superb points.
It may be argued that Alcaraz started to serve too predictably, and it soon became apparent that not even a player with the 19-year-hitting old’s prowess could compete with the in-form Auger-Aliassime. In the sixth game of the second set, he went up 30-0 but was unable to overcome Auger-resolute Aliassime’s defense, cutting a dejected figure.
Auger-Aliassime put himself in danger by refusing to back down and claiming a double-break cushion.
And despite some late Alcaraz fighting, he served out to secure one of his season’s most spectacular wins, sending the Spaniard to only his second semifinal loss in nine matches. In the Sunday final, Roberto Bautista Agut or Holger Rune will face off against the sport’s top performer.
