Next to Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, the top two players in the world, Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime was the hottest player on the ATP Tour in the closing months of 2025.
After winning only two matches in the first three majors of the year, the 25-year-old seemingly out of nowhere reached the semifinals of the 2025 U.S. Open. In the fall, Auger-Aliassime won in Brussels, reached the finals in Paris and got into the year-end ATP Finals, where he fell in the semifinals to Alcaraz.
But the injury bug, which has plagued the lanky, big ball-striker in the past, bit him in the first round of the 2026 Australian Open on Monday in Melbourne. The seventh-seeded Auger-Aliassime had to retire, while trailing two sets to one, to Portugal’s Nuno Borges, due to persistent leg cramps.
Borges advanced with a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, retired, triumph.
Auger-Aliassime called a pair of medical timeouts, once late in the third set and again before the start of the fourth set as trainers worked on his left leg. But after playing two points in the fourth set, he waved the white flag.
“I want to be on the court winning. I want to be on the court competing with my opponent,” said Auger-Aliassime, ranked No. 8 in the world. “I don’t want to be just standing there like a punching bag. So there’s no point, and you know to move on.”
Two other seeded players won in straight sets in the afternoon session on the second day of competition in Melbourne. No. 11 Danill Medvedev of Russia defeated the Netherlands’ Jesper de Jong, 7-5, 6-2, 7-6 (2), while No. 19 Tommy Paul knocked off countryman Aleksandar Kovacevic, 6-4, 6-3, 6-3.
There were 11 breaks of service in Medvedev’s match, but the three-time finalist in Australia overcame his four lost serves with 47 winners and outstanding net play, where he won 33 of 44 points.
Paul was brilliant on serve, smashing 20 aces with no double faults. He did not face a break point in the match and produced 38 winners to only 16 unforced errors.
Home favorite and sixth-seeded Alex de Minaur of Australia cruised past lucky loser Mackenzie McDonald, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 in 1 hour, 48 minutes. de Minaur struggled on his first serve, only getting 52% efficiency, but McDonald could not take advantage, committing 42 unforced errors in the match.
No. 13 Andrey Rublev of Russia captured a 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 triumph over Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi, but No. 24 Arthur Rinderknech of France dropped a 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 6-4 decision to Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan.
Big-serving Reilly Opelka cracked 23 aces in a 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Norway qualifier Nicolai Budkov Kjaier. Also advancing in four-set matches were China’s Juncheng Shang, a winner over Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut, and Kazakhstan’s Alexander Shevchenko, who defeated Swedish qualifier Elias Ymer.
–Field Level Media
