By Canadian Press

Canadian teenager Auger-Aliassime shocks No. 16 Fognini at Rio Open

Feb 19, 2019 | 6:52 PM

RIO DE JANEIRO — Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime cruised to a 6-2, 6-3 upset of second-seed Fabio Fognini on Tuesday at the Rio Open tennis tournament.

Fognini, ranked No. 16 in the world, is the highest ranked player to lose to the 104th-ranked Canadian teen. It’s Auger-Aliassime’s second win over a top-20 opponent after he defeated then No. 18 Lucas Pouille in the opening round of last year’s Rogers Cup in Toronto.

Auger-Aliassime, a wild-card in Rio, is expected to move into the top-100 after the tournament. He will next face Chile’s Christian Garin, ranked 91 in the world, in the second round.

Showing veteran poise, Auger-Aliassime fended off all five break points he faced while converting three of the five break point presented to him by his Italian opponent. The Canadian’s return game was also strong, as he limited Fognini to one ace, and held the veteran to converting on 60 per cent of first serve points and just 45 per cent of second serve points.

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Auger-Aliassime’s matchup with Fognini was a potential Davis Cup preview. Canada is in a group with Italy and the United States to open the Davis Cup finals, which will be held November in Madrid.

The Canadian Press