Canada's Félix Auger-Aliassime took a set off defending U.S. Open champion Jannik Sinner in Friday's semi-final, but ultimately fell in a gutsy loss.Mike Frey/Reuters
Félix Auger-Aliassime’s run at the U.S. Open has ended, but the Canadian star’s thrilling Grand Slam performance bodes well for what’s to come.
The 25-year-old Montrealer upset three top-15 players on his way to his second career Grand Slam semi-final, and first since he made the final four at Flushing Meadows in 2021. Before Friday’s semi-final match ended in a gutsy loss to world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, he took a set off the defending champion. And now, the former No. 6 is set to rejoin the top 13 once again as his ranking climbs.
Auger-Aliassime falls to Sinner in U.S. Open semi-final after thrilling Grand Slam run
“Tonight, I just want to take a moment to soak in the tournament and everything that was good,” Auger-Aliassime told reporters after the match. “To say how close my level is [with Sinner’s]? Yeah, we were fighting out there. We had some good points. I was going toe-to-toe at times, some sets dominating. Of course, I feel competitive, but the future will tell how close I am.”
Here’s everything you need to know about Auger-Aliassime after his unlikely run at the U.S. Open.
Who is Félix Auger-Aliassime and where is he from?
Auger-Aliassime and Gabriela Dabrowski won Canada's second-ever Olympic tennis medal with a bronze in mixed-doubles at the Paris Olympics last year.CARL DE SOUZA/Getty Images
Auger-Aliassime, who turned 25 last month, was born in Montreal and raised in the suburbs of Quebec City with his older sister, Malika, who also plays tennis. His father, Sam Aliassime, is a tennis instructor who emigrated from Togo, while his mother, Marie Auger, is a teacher of French-Canadian descent. Auger-Aliassime followed his father’s and sister’s footsteps into the sport, beginning to play at just four years old. He trained at the Académie de Tennis Hérisset-Bordeleau in Quebec City and began training in Montreal at Tennis Canada’s National Training Centre at the age of 14.
Cathal Kelly: Auger-Aliassime has the look of a winner as he reaches the U.S. Open semi-final
Just before his 15th birthday, in 2015, Auger-Aliassime became the youngest player to win a main draw match on the ATP Challenger Tour, and he is one of just seven players to have won a Challenger title under the age of 16. He made his top-100 and top-25 debuts on the ATP Tour at age 18 in 2019, and has won seven titles in his career. In 2021 he made the quarter-final at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open semi-final, and in 2022 he made it to the Australian Open’s quarter-final. In 2024, Auger-Aliassime and Gabriela Dabrowski won bronze in the mixed-doubles tournament at the Olympics in Paris, Canada’s second Olympic tennis medal in history.
Auger-Aliassime now lives in Monaco where he trains with Frédéric Fontang, his coach since 2017. Later this month, he is set to marry his longtime partner Nina Ghaibi, an equestrian athlete and cousin of Australian tennis player Ajla Tomljanović.
What is Félix Auger-Aliassime’s ATP ranking?
Auger-Aliassime was No. 27 in the ATP rankings heading into the U.S. open, but his performance has boosted his provisional ranking to No. 13 in the world, the highest it has been in more than two years.
Auger-Aliassime’s career-high singles ranking of No. 6 came in November 2022, and made him the second-highest-ranked Canadian man ever and the fourth-highest-ranked Canadian player in history. But he has spent most of the last two years outside of the top 20 and dropped as low as No. 36 in April 2024.
After the U.S. Open, he is poised to be the highest-ranked Canadian man over Denis Shapovalov (26) and Gabriel Diallo (35). This tournament also marks the first time Auger-Aliassime has eliminated three seeded players during a single major: No. 8 de Minaur in the quarter-final, No. 3 Alexander Zverev in the third round and No. 15 Andrey Rublev in the fourth.
When are Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz set to play in the U.S. Open final?
Sinner will face rival and world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz for the Grand Slam title on Sunday. The Spaniard defeated tennis titan Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the first semi-final earlier Friday evening.
How tall is Félix Auger-Aliassime?
Auger-Aliassime is six feet and four inches tall, or about 193 centimetres, according to the ATP.
What makes Félix Auger-Aliassime so good at tennis?
Auger-Aliassime is famed for his speed on the court, powerful serve and his extended reach that allows him to cover much of the court. His composure, particularly in his younger years in the sport, has also set him apart, and it’s a trait he says he gets from his dad, who was watching in the stands Friday night. “He’s very hardworking, determined, never complains,” Auger-Aliassime told The Globe and Mail last year. “He was a great example for me growing up.”
With reports from Rachel Brady, Cathal Kelly and The Canadian Press