Felix Auger-Aliassime edged a three-set thriller against qualifier Aleksandar Kovacevic to claim his second ATP title of the season in Montpellier on Sunday. (More Tennis News)
Auger-Aliassime💧, who won the Adelaide International last month, emerged a 6-2 6-7 (7-9) 7-6 (7-2) victor against his American opponent in two hours and 39 minutes.
💛The Canadian let slip two championship points in the second-set tie-break, but recovered brilliantly to earn his seventh ATP Tour title, six of which have come indoors.
💜Auger-Aliassime’s difficult path to victory had seemed unlikely after he dominated the opening set of the final, but Kovacevic responded in the second with some excellent tennis.
ꦫKovacevic reeled off three straight points to level the match. However, Auger-Aliassime remained calm, sealing the victory with an ace to end the contest.
ꦰ"For sure, the craziest final I have played, whether I won or lost," said Auger-Aliassime in his on-court interview. "It was a crazy match. I couldn’t have got a better start.
ꦍ"I was feeling good, but credit to Aleks, he raised his level. I think it was a very high level on both ends, serving well.
ꦬ"This match deserved to go three sets with the way he was playing in the second."
𒁏Meanwhile, in Singapore, Elise Mertens eased to her ninth WTA singles title on Sunday after beating American Ann Li in straight sets at the Singapore Open final.
ꦓMertens needed just one hour and 22 minutes to seal a 6-1 6-4 triumph, securing her first tour victory since she won the Monastir title in October 2023.
🎀She has now won seven of her nine titles on hard court, while Mertens also continued her fine start to the 2025 season after finishing as the runner-up at the Hobart International.
🐲The Belgian leaves Singapore with a 10-2 record for the year, the quickest she has managed to reach that many victories since 2021, when she started with 10-1.
♔Mertens started strongly to proceedings as she cruised to the opening set in just 28 minutes, losing just two points on serve as she claimed the early advantage.
♉Though Li threatened to produce a comeback in the second, Mertens outlasted her opponent in a gruelling 23-shot rally to earn championship point, which she converted.
ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ"It became tight in the end," Mertens said. "It was a bit nerve-wracking. I had a good start, and I felt she was building up pretty well, so I’m very pleased that I could finish that.
♎"All credit to [Li] for coming back in the second set, but I really, really wanted to win today."
