Felix Stuns Tsitsipas For First Top 10 Win

Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime earned one of the biggest wins of his career on Saturday in an all-#NextGenATP battle, defeating World No. 10 Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-2 to reach the third round of the BNP Paribas Open.

"I wasn’t sure what to expect. I definitely didn’t expect to win that way," Auger-Aliassime said on Tennis Channel after the match. "But I believed in myself, was able to impose my game like I did in the first round, and that’s it."

Last year in Indian Wells, a 17-year-old Auger-Aliassime became the youngest match winner at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament since it served as the first event at this level in 1990. Now, thanks to his first victory against a Top 10 opponent (1-0), the teenager will have a chance to reach the fourth round when he faces No. 21 seed Roberto Bautista Agut or Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka.

Auger-Aliassime began the season at No. 108 in the ATP Rankings. But the 18-year-old has been on a tear since mid-February, reaching his first ATP Tour final at the Rio Open presented by Claro and advancing to the quarter-finals of the Brasil Open.

While those tournaments were on clay, Auger-Aliassime has not slowed down on hard court, defeating Auckland finalist Cameron Norrie in straight sets and now Australian Open semi-finalist and Marseille champion Tsitsipas in just 77 minutes. He is currently at a career-high World No. 58, and on his way up with his performance thus far in the desert.

[ALSO LIKE]

This was the #NextGenATP pair’s first FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting, but Auger-Aliassime had won all three of his junior matches against the reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion, despite being two years younger. Tsitsipas landed 83 per cent of his first serves, but was able to win only 64 per cent of those points (25/39), and Auger-Aliassime converted all three of his break chances, while saving all seven opportunities Tsitsipas had.

American Marcos Giron, who used a wild card into qualifying to battle into the main draw and then upset Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, continued his dream run on Saturday. Giron defeated 23rd seed Alex de Minaur 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 in one hour and 49 minutes. 

Giron, the No. 217 player in the ATP Rankings, is the lowest-ranked player in the third round at Indian Wells since No. 239 Ivo Karlovic in 2011. The 25-year-old, who underwent double hip surgery three years ago, owned just one tour-level win before this week. Giron captured his first ATP Challenger Tour title this January in Orlando. 

The American will next face 13th seed Milos Raonic or compatriot Sam Querrey. Giron and Querrey both attended Thousand Oaks High School in Southern California, although Querrey is six years older.

In other action, Rio de Janeiro champion Laslo Djere, who defeated Auger-Aliassime in Rio and Sao Paulo, ousted Argentine Guido Andreozzi 6-3, 6-4. The 30th seed will next play lucky loser Miomir Kecmanovic, who took advantage of his opportunity by beating German Maximilian Marterer 6-3, 6-2.