SINCE the early days of his career, predictions of greatness have been hot on the tail of Montreal born Felix Auger-Aliassime. A junior career encompassed by a ranking of number two, a French Open final appearance, and a US Open junior title win at the age of 15 ignited discussion of future stardom for Auger-Aliassime. His success on the junior circuit later rocketed him into the history books, as he became the first 16-year-old to win an ATP Challenger singles title. Two years later, he made history once again as the first 18-year-old to make his debut in the top 25 since Lleyton Hewitt back in 1999.

He went professional in 2017 and burst onto the ATP Tour scene, garnering attention off the back of three ATP finals in his teenage years. He has since steadily built his profile and currently sits 12th on the world rankings – a slight drop from his career-high of 11th. Despite the high expectations that he’s seen since his younger days, Auger-Aliassime has struggled to translate his tour-level success into a title win. The Canadian has appeared in eight ATP finals so far – Stuttgart and Lyon among them – and has lost all of them in straight sets. Less than favourable for him, half of the final losses have been against lower-ranked players.

Although he’s struggled to make a heavy impact at tour level in recent times, it’s hard to ignore the glimpses of ferocity which has been underscored in several matches in another excellent year for the now-21-year-old.

He started finding form after his stunning defeat of childhood hero Roger Federer 4-6 6-3 6-2 during the Halle Open. The 21-year-old attracted further attention but fell short of his finals dream against Ugo Humbert, going down 4-6 6-3 6-7 in the semi-final. He saw another career-defining moment in Wimbledon during his first Grand Slam quarterfinal, proving a worthy opponent up against German Alexander Zverev, defeating him 6-4 7-6 3-6 3-6 4-6. He continued to ramp up his game in the US Open where an extraordinary run in New York saw him secure a spot in his first major semi-final after significant wins against Roberto Bautista Agut, Frances Tiafoe and Carlos Alcaraz. But his matchup with number two Danill Medvedev saw another finals opportunity snatched away from him.

Auger-Aliassime has already amassed several career highs for someone so young, with a couple more significant goals on the table – a tour-level title and cracking the top 10 after achieving a career-high rank of 11 in 2019. Combine this with the eight ATP Tour final losses and frustrating fallouts against lower-ranked players, and there is no doubt the young Canadian has a ways to go.

It is hard to deny that he is yet to achieve his potential, but it’s certainly not impossible for him to make the leap to reach explosive heights. The 21-year-old has the right attributes for the job: a 193cm frame, impressive athleticism and can be explosive in his serving. Across all surfaces for this year, he delivered an 83 per cent win rate on serve and so far achieved an impressive 1,424 aces over his short career. Consistency will be key for Auger-Aliassime as he gains more experience as he grows as a player, and there is no doubt that the young Canadian will soar to new heights and live up to his potential in the years to come.

Picture credit: Tennis Photo Network