Australian Open: Dan Evans beaten in straight sets by Felix Auger-Aliassime as British singles hopes end in third round
Dan Evans had reached the last 32 in Melbourne for the first time since 2017 having been given free passage with a walkover win over Arthur Rinderknech in the second round, but the 31-year-old faltered on Saturday, going down 6-4 6-1 6-1 to Felix Auger-Aliassime
Saturday 22 January 2022 13:39, UK
Britain's last singles hope Dan Evans was beaten in straight sets by ninth-seeded Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in the Australian Open third round.
Evans had reached the last 32 for the first time since 2017 having been given free passage with a walkover win over Arthur Rinderknech in the second round, but faltered on Saturday, going down 6-4 6-1 6-1.
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The 31-year-old had won their only previous meeting in the Murray River Open at the same venue 12 months ago to claim his only ATP Tour title, but a repeat never looked on the cards from the moment he slammed a forehand drive-volley into the net to lose the opening set.
Auger-Aliassime, 21, had spent eight hours on court in his first two matches but Evans was unable to capitalise on any weariness and make this an extended stay on John Cain Arena. The Canadian will face Marin Cilic in the fourth round after the 2014 US Open champion defeated fifth seed Andrey Rublev of Russia 7-5 7-6 (7-3) 3-6 6-3.
"It's tough to feel better," said a smiling Auger-Aliassime following his win over Evans.
"It's one of the best Grand Slam performances I've had. In the first set we were both serving well and I was fortunate to get that break point to close it out, after that for some reason everything was working for me today.
"I'm really happy because the first two matches were really tough for me, so I'm happy to be through in straight sets."
Auger-Aliassime breezes through
In contrast to Auger-Aliassime's lengthy earlier matches, British No 2 Evans did not have to take to the court to make it into the third round, with Rinderknech withdrawing injured ahead of the scheduled clash on Thursday.
By the end of the day he was flying the British flag alone after defeats for Emma Raducanu and Andy Murray, who was among a sizeable British contingent supporting Evans courtside.
There were surreal scenes early on as the sounds of a singer belting out hits from The Beatles and Elton John at a nearby concert drifted over the arena. Evans found it significantly less amusing than the crowd but had no choice but to play on.
It was Evans who had the first chances with break points in the fifth and ninth games but Auger-Aliassime was rock solid when it mattered, and that would be a recurring theme.
The 21-year-old Canadian has borne the burden of expectation since setting a series of age-related records on the second-tier Challenger Tour.
Initially he struggled to make his mark at Grand Slam level but, since beginning work with Rafael Nadal's uncle and former coach Toni last spring, Auger-Aliassime has taken several steps forward.
He reached the semi-finals at the US Open and began this season in impressive fashion by guiding Canada to the ATP Cup title.
The frustration for Evans, who has also started the season well, will be that a lot of the damage was self-inflicted, particularly the two missed volleys at the end of the opening set and then a double fault on break point to start the second.
Auger-Aliassime extended his run of games to seven to lead 5-0 before Evans finally stopped the rot.
The Canadian had been a little loose in the first set, especially on return, but he got better and better as the match wore on, overpowering the much shorter Evans from the baseline.
The pressure told as Evans dropped serve again in the third game of the third set and Auger-Aliassime - who hit 40 winners compared to just 10 for his opponent - quickly wrapped up a comprehensive victory.
Evans: I panicked on the court
Evans is never one to shy away from sharing his thoughts after a loss, or a victory, and he was straight-talking after this defeat to Auger-Aliassime.
"I panicked on the court. I missed my chance and I panicked a bit, and that happens in tennis," he said.
He also discussed the impact his second-round opponent withdrawing injured had leading into this encounter with the ninth seed.
"I'm not making excuses but it wasn't easy to have a walkover and I sort of lost my momentum a little bit. I never had that before, two days off, and it was difficult," Evans added.
"I thought about the match quite a lot and probably overthought it. He was obviously way better than me as well. But I think I didn't really play my game or didn't get my game on court.
"I thought I've got a decent chance to win that match and probably thought a bit too much about him rather than looking after myself, my own game."
During the contest Evans was supported by several British players who were not out on court and he expects a little bit of friendly banter following his loss.
"It's a nice gesture that they came out. They're probably regretting wasting two hours of their time now, and they will probably let me know!"
Now, he will head to Dubai for a training block ahead of two tournaments in the Middle East next month. Despite this loss, the 31-year-old remains pleased with his start to the season.
"It's a long year. It's not like I should be worried about what's happened. I started the year well, I've had some good wins, had real momentum going into the match and one match is one match.
"I've got to forget about it. It would be another mistake if I keep worrying about that match."
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