Félix Auger-Aliassime serves during his fourth round match against Arthur Fils in the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on Tuesday.Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Reuters
Canadian tennis star Félix Auger-Aliassime was eliminated from singles play at the Indian Wells BNP Paribas Open after dropping a 6-3, 7-6 (9) decision to France’s Arthur Fils in fourth-round action Tuesday.
The 21-year-old Fils, seeded 30th at the 1000-level event, won 83 per cent of his service points and didn’t face a break point in the first set.
Montreal’s Auger-Aliassime, seeded ninth, put more pressure on Fils’s serve in the second set but only converted one of four break points.
Fils pounded his chest in triumph as Auger-Aliassime hit wide on match point.
Fils will next face fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany.
Victoria Mboko returns a shot to Amanda Anisimova.Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
In women’s singles, Victoria Mboko of Toronto upset sixth-seeded American Amanda Anisimova 6-4, 6-1 in one hour 13 minutes. Mboko converted all four break points she had in the match.
“I knew she can strike a pretty clean and good ball,” Mboko said. “I feel like I had to really raise my level today and try to stay in there as much as I could with her. I’m glad to have got it done.”
The 10th-seeded Mboko advanced to the quarter-finals where she’ll face top-seeded Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, who beat Japan’s Naomi Osaka 6-2, 6-4.
“I feel really excited if anything,” Mboko said. “I know she’s winning everything. So it’s a good challenge and it’s a privilege to play her. I’m just sure it’s going to be really fun.”
In men’s doubles, Auger-Aliassime and American Sebastian Korda lost to Russians Karen Khachanov and Andrey Rublev on Tuesday night.
Khachanov and Rublev won 7-6 (3), 4-6, 10-5 to advance to the quarter-finals.
In women’s doubles, Ottawa’s Gabriela Dabrowski and Brazil’s Luisa Stefani were eliminated by Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the U.S. and Spain’s Cristina Bucsa in a tight quarter-final. The winners took the match 7-6 (3), 3-6, 10-8.
They will next play Kazakhstan’s Anna Danilina and Serbia’s Aleksandra Krunic in the semi-final on Thursday.