Quebec’s Félix Auger-Aliassime conceded a wrong-time break in his second-round match at the Rome tennis tournament on Friday, losing 6-4, 4-6 and 7-5 to Australian Alexei Popyrin, a qualifier.
It took the winner 3 hours and 17 minutes to surprise “FAA” who earned a Round 2 bye. The tenth-ranked player in the world is currently struggling after losing their first clash in Madrid and being eliminated in their second clash in the Miami Masters.
Popyrin did some damage with his deep punches. He also used a third break point in a row to take a 6-5 lead in the deciding set thanks to a “pass” when Auger-Aliassime was on the net. The 77th ATP player sealed the game by keeping his service afterwards.
The Maple Leaf athlete had nine double faults and faced 16 break points; he escaped three. On the other hand, he had two breaks on four occasions.
In addition, he will only take part in the doubles of this competition on clay.
For her part, Ontario’s Bianca Andreescu went dry in the second round to Marketa Vondrousova, losing 6-0, 6-1.