Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime secured a spot in the fourth round of the Cincinnati Open tennis event by defeating France’s Arthur Rinderknech with a score of 7-6 (4), 4-2 on Monday. Rinderknech struggled with the heat during the match, briefly collapsing before retiring in the second set with Auger-Aliassime leading the way. Auger-Aliassime showcased a dominant performance, serving seven aces and winning an impressive 87% of his first-serve points.
The Montreal native capitalized on two of his 11 break opportunities while limiting Rinderknech to just one unsuccessful break-point chance in the two-hour, one-minute match. Auger-Aliassime is set to face Benjamin Bonzi of France in the next round, who defeated Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas with a score of 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-4 on the same day.
In another match on Monday evening, top-seeded Jannik Sinner of Italy emerged victorious against Montreal’s Gabriel Diallo with a scoreline of 6-2, 7-6 (6). The game faced disruptions due to a power outage at the stadium, causing intermittent issues with the video review board and triggering a fire alarm during the second set.
Diallo struggled with a high number of unforced errors, committing a total of 51, alongside 10 double faults amidst his 10 aces. In comparison, Sinner had 20 unforced errors. Despite Sinner not displaying his usual top-ranked form, he managed to capitalize on critical points against the resilient Canadian.
Sinner succeeded in converting three out of 12 break points, while Diallo managed to secure only one out of three. Sinner maintained strong performance levels, winning 73% of his service points and 46% of return points, whereas Diallo won 54% of his service points and 27% on returns. Sinner progresses to the round of 16 and is scheduled to face Adrian Mannarino of France, who caused an upset by defeating 13th-seeded American Tommy Paul with a score of 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 on Monday night.