LONDON | His first half of the season was marred by injuries, including a ruptured tendon in his left knee that still hurts at times. There are those surprising losses, too, considering the state he was in at the end of last year. Despite everything, Félix Auger-Aliassime remains confident two days before his first game at Wimbledon.
“I’m assuming that another good phase will come soon, in which I’ll be able to win again,” he said on Saturday at the traditional media day at the All England Club.
Will it be at Wimbledon, where he lost in the first round last year but also reached the quarter-finals in 2021, his first major Grand Slam result?
“If I can win the first round and continue in the tournament, I think I can do something good,” said the No. 11 seed of the most prestigious major tournament […] I feel ready to attack the tournament.”
Find your best ranking… and even better
One thing is for sure: Félix doesn’t seem to let his physical problems get him down and his results have not met expectations. In front of the journalists who came towards him, his cap adorned with his new “FAA” logo on his headthe Quebecer spoke very calmly about the past few months.
But above all to the next ones. Because he still believes he can turn the tide in his favor in the second half of the year. He also has goals in mind, such as “Find”. [son] best placement”, sixth in the world or even “even better”.
“I’m not angry or impatient,” he insisted. I accepted the last hour. There are seasons [plus difficiles] in a career. I don’t see it badly.
“I still have the same confidence and ambition that I have what it takes to win a tournament like this,” he continued. […] Even this year, my ambitions will never let up. I still have big ambitions for this year. I’ll try to do my best in the second half of the season.”
A surprise rival
The first step in that return “to his best” will be his match against American Michael Mmoh, ranked No. 119 in the world and drafted following his loss in the final qualifying round around 7:15 a.m. ET on Monday.
Félix was initially scheduled to face grass-skilled Serb Filip Krajinovic, whom he had beaten in the last three meetings after losing the first two. But the world’s 204th announced on Saturday that he was withdrawing from the tournament due to a wrist injury.
The FAA told the media that he was looking forward to meeting a player he had faced in the past. Here he is now with nothing. He never crossed swords with Mmoh, who surprisingly reached the third round earlier in the year in Melbourne.
But as he likes to say: “No tournament is easy”, regardless of the opponent.
He envisions winning Wimbledon… someday
With his powerful serve, Félix Auger-Aliassime has a weapon that could one day make him the last unbeaten player at the All England Club on the last Sunday of the fortnight.
The 22-year-old knows. If he hopes to win “all the Grand Slam tournaments,” he also says Wimbledon is a title he wants to win.
But not so fast, he adds. Because for a long time, emphasizes Félix – 20 years to be exact – a coronation in London remains the prerogative of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray. No other player has triumphed there since 2003.
“It’s still hard to win the tournament. But someday, [ils prendront tous leur retraite]and young people will start winning it,” he says.