By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Monday January 24, 2022
Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated Marin Cilic to reach the last eight at the Australian Open for the first time.
Photo Source: Getty
Canadian men are living large at the 2022 Australian Open.
Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated No.27 seed Marin Cilic 2-6, 7-6, 6-2, 7-6 to book his spot in the quarterfinals, joining compatriot Denis Shapovalov, who defeated No.3-seeded Alexander Zverev in straight sets on Day 7.
Auger-Aliassime, who had to rally from two sets to one down in his first-round match against Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori, has now reached the quarterfinals in each of his last three Grand Slam appearances. The No.9-ranked Quebecoise cracked 38 winners against 31 unforced errors to rally from a set down against Cilic. The victory marks Auger-Aliassime’s first victory over the 2014 US Open champion and three-time Grand Slam finalist in four tries.
The 21-year-old Canadian cracked 24 aces and earned 15 break points against Cilic, but converted only two. It was more than enough as Auger-Aliassime came through both tiebreaks that the pair played, in the second set and fourth set.
For Auger-Aliassime to replicate his best Grand Slam performance, he will have to get by Daniil Medvedev in the last eight.
Shapovalov will play Rafael Nadal on Tuesday night in Melbourne. Never before have two Canadian men reached the semifinals at the same Grand Slam.