By Canadian Press

Auger-Aliassime increases winning streak to 14 matches with close win over Ymer

Nov 2, 2022 | 10:21 AM

PARIS — Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime kept his winning streak alive with a razor-thin 6-7 (6), 6-4, 7-6 (6) win over Sweden’s Mikael Ymer in second-round action Wednesday at the Paris Masters tennis tournament.

Auger-Aliassime won on his second match point opportunity to end a marathon match that took three and a half hours to complete. With the eight-seeded Canadian serving for the match, Ymer hit a forehand long as Auger-Aliassime continued his march toward the season-ending ATP Finals with his 14th straight win.

Auger-Aliassime had a chance to put the match away earlier in the third-set tiebreak. Ymer, serving down 6-5, stayed alive when he tucked a shot over Auger-Aliassime’s racket to end a lengthy rally.

Auger-Aliassime set up his second match point when Ymer hit a shot into the net on the following point.

Ymer, who advanced to the main draw through qualifying, did not make it easy for the in-form Auger-Aliassime.

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The Montreal native, who entered Paris after holding serve throughout his tournament win last week at the Swiss Indoors in Basel, faced 17 break points on Wednesday and saved 14 of them.

But Auger-Aliassime was opportunistic on his break chances, converting four of five.

Auger-Aliassime had 11 winners to Ymer’s two and 45 winners to his opponent’s 34.

The Canadian will next face the winner of a match between ninth-seeded American Taylor Fritz and French wild-card Gilles Simon.

Fellow Canadian Denis Shapovalov, of Richmond Hill, Ont., was scheduled to play Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, the tournament’s 14th seed, later Wednesday.

Auger-Aliassime entered the tournament on the heels of three straight titles: ATP 250 tournament wins in Florence, Italy and Antwerp, Belgium and the ATP 500 win in Basel.

He is seeking his first Masters-level title in Paris as well as his first berth in the ATP Finals.

Auger-Aliassime entered Paris ranked sixth in the ATP Finals qualifying standings. The players holding down the sixth and seventh spots at the end of the tournament will earn the final two berths.

Fritz entered the tournament in eighth spot.

The ATP Finals start Nov. 13 in Turin, Italy.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 2, 2022.

The Canadian Press