“My playing style is not the most spectacular, but it is effective”: Felix Auger-Aliassime opens up on his tennis DNA

Felix Auger-Aliassime continued at a very high level in his return to the courts this week at the Open Occitanie. After an injury that forced him to withdraw early from the Australian Open a few weeks ago, the Canadian is once again feeling like a top-10 player after reaching his first semifinals of the season.

So far, it has been straight-set victories and against high-quality opponents. He made his debut by defeating three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka (6-4, 7-6) and then former top-15 Arthur Fils (6-4, 6-2), who continues his work to return to the top positions of the rankings after a year plagued by injuries.

The first-round elimination in Melbourne caused Auger-Aliassime to drop a few places in the rankings down to No. 8 — shortly after having settled inside the top five towards the end of last year. The Canadian took advantage of his pedigree in indoor hard-court tournaments and became one of the best players of the end of the season — placing himself in an excellent position for 2026 as one of the favourites in the biggest tournaments.

While competing at the Open Occitanie — where he is defending the title — Auger-Aliassime referred to one of the topics he was asked about: his playing style — strong service games, dominance from the baseline and the search for points as short as possible — precisely an ideal style for indoor conditions. “I know that my playing style is not the most spectacular, but it is effective in competition,” commented Auger-Aliassime from France. “The serve is a key element of my game; it is difficult for me to win if it doesn’t work.”

“Of course, I played well in other aspects of the game, but it is true that I served particularly well. Here, indoors, the serve is even more devastating. The absence of wind allows you to hit much harder than usual.”

The Canadian got past the quarterfinals against the complicated Arthur Fils, who has shown this week that he is already physically ready after a couple of wins and reaching the quarterfinals, looking in good physical shape — currently his most important objective. Auger-Aliassime was full of praise for his latest rival. “I think Arthur didn’t have much luck with everything he had to go through last year because of his injury.”

“It’s excellent news to see him back on the courts, especially for him,” Auger-Aliassime added. “In reality, you never know how it’s going to end, which is why we say that every match is different. Anything can happen on a court, especially against a player of this quality. We all know Arthur’s abilities; he has shown them since a very young age and has been able to do so against the best players at the highest level.”

In the semifinals, Auger-Aliassime prepares to face another local player: world No. 150 Titouan Droguet, 24 years old and coming from qualifying, who has been the big surprise of the tournament — defeating 2025 runner-up Kovacevic and then fourth seed Tallon Griekspoor.

Auger-Aliassime will look to reach the 21st final of his career and to do so in Occitanie for the second consecutive year. A victory would guarantee him recovering one ranking position up to No. 7 — leaving Australian Alex de Minaur slightly further behind — while in the event of lifting the title in Occitanie he would climb to No. 6, rapidly moving back closer to the top five.