Jannik Sinner and Felix Auger-Aliassime have set up a blockbuster Cincinnati Open contest.
Sinner, the world number one, and Auger-Aliassime, the former world number six, are set to do battle on Thursday afternoon under the bright lights of Cincinnati.
Sinner created history while navigating a tricky round of 16 contest against Adrian Mannarino. Meanwhile, Auger-Aliassime defeated Benjamin Bonzi in straight sets.
The match is particularly interesting due to their head-to-head record. Sinner has failed to defeat Auger-Aliassime in their two previous meetings.
Back in 2022, the pair faced each other at the Cincinnati Open. The Canadian emerged victorious, and discussed his opponent’s game after the match.
Felix Auger-Aliassime said Jannik Sinner was ‘too good’ for a set-and-a-half
In 2022, Jannik Sinner and Felix Auger-Aliassime met in the Cincinnati Open round of 16.
A titanic battle commenced, with the Canadian saving match points before going on to claim victory, winning 2-6 7-6 6-1.
During his on-court interview with Tennis TV, Auger-Aliassime noted the high level Sinner was playing at during the first half of the match.
The Canadian said: “Jannik was just playing too good. I didn’t have a great start, was missing a lot, but I just had no time. He was playing so fast so precise, serving well.
“For a set and a half it was just too good.
“That game he broke me in the second, returning on the baseline for three returns in a row. I mean, you can’t do much better so, I had to give it to him.
“But at the end I was still on the court trying to find ways, trying to fight and trying to see how I could make him miss a few more balls and to put myself in a competing position and I did that, I did that well and then I think I felt like… it was a tough game when I saved those two match points, two bad double faults.
“But to come back and play that way in the tiebreak and in the third set, that means a lot to me going forward.”
The Canadian was then asked about ‘tidying up’ his second serve during the match.
He said: “Well I had to move better after my second serve, because you hit a second serve, he plays early and he hits it really hard right at you. So there’s not much you can do, sometimes it’s too good.
“But I had to move my feet a little more, start the rally, and then see how it goes.
“I think I did that better. I was more consistent definitely at the end of that second set and the third set.”
Auger-Aliassime would go on to lose in the next round to eventual champion Borna Coric.
Felix Auger-Aliassime demolished Jannik Sinner at the 2022 Madrid Open
Just a few months earlier, Sinner and Auger-Aliassime met for the first time on the ATP Tour at another Masters 1000 event: the Madrid Open.
Again the Canadian won, but by a much greater margin. Sinner was no match for Auger-Aliassime, with the Canadian winning 6-1 6-2 on the clay surface.
Back in 2022, Sinner was almost two years away from claiming his first Grand Slam title in Australia. Therefore, it will be extremely interesting to see how the players match up when considering the development Sinner has made in those three years.
The winner of Sinner and Auger-Aliassime will face either qualifier Terence Atmane or Holger Rune in the Cincinnati Open semi-finals.
