ROTTERDAM, Netherlands — Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime has advanced to the second round of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament.
The 19-year-old from Montreal hit 16 aces in a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 win over German Jan-Lennard Struff on Tuesday.
Auger-Aliassime, ranked 21st in the world, improved to 1-1 against the 34th-ranked Struff after losing to the German last month at the ATP Cup in Australia.
The Canadian was pleased with how he rebounded after a rough second set Tuesday.
"It was really tough, there was so many emotions running through my head," Auger-Aliassime said. "I felt I had chances in the first game of the second set, with the overheard, and so many chances to make the break. It was really frustrating.
"It led me to lose focus in the second set and get broken twice, which isn't ideal for me or normal. In the third set, it was about forgetting and moving forward. I’m really happy, it’s a really good lesson and a great win to come back after losing the set so badly."
Auger-Aliassime next faces reigning tournament runner-up Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria, who upset No. 8 seed Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., in the first round.
Vancouver's Vasek Pospisil is the other Canadian in the draw at the ATP Tour 500 event.
Pospisil, coming off a run to the final at an event in France last week, faces top seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia in the first round of the indoor hardcourt tournament on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 11, 2020.
The Canadian Press
