Two-time defending champ Felix advances in Basel, Ruud suffers Turin blow

Two-time defending champion Felix Auger-Aliassime maintained his dominance at the Swiss Indoors Basel on Wednesday when he moved past Sebastian Baez 7-5, 6-1 to reach the second round.

Auger-Aliassime has won his past 11 matches at the ATP 500 event, having lifted the trophy on debut in 2022 and in 2023. The Canadian looked comfortable in the indoor conditions against Baez, winning 86 per cent (31/36) of his first-serve points to advance after 75 minutes.

Auger-Aliassime is looking to rediscover his best form this week, having fallen in his opening-round matches in Tokyo and Shanghai and in his second-round match in Antwerp.

The 24-year-old, who is trying to become the first player born in 1991 or later to three-peat an ATP Tour event, leads Baez 2-0 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series and will next meet Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.

Felix ❤️ Basel

Smooth sailing for the two-time defending champ! #SwissIndoorsBasel | @felixtennis pic.twitter.com/kYVKg45via

In other action, Casper Ruud’s Nitto ATP Finals hopes took a hit by Roberto Bautista Agut.

The Spaniard won his first tour-level title since 2022 on Sunday in Antwerp and backed that up by defeating Ruud 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. The 36-year-old will take on Canadian wild card Denis Shapovalov in the second round.

“I am enjoying it on the court. As you can see I feel well after a tough year,” Bautista Agut said after his two-hour, three-minute win. “I had a lot of pressure and was playing qualies, but as soon as I got a little bit of calm I could play better and I am enjoying it more.”

Ruud leaves Basel seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. He leads ninth-placed Alex de Minaur by 440 points. Rublev, who is also in action in Basel, is currently in the final qualification spot in eighth. De Minaur takes to court in Vienna this week.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]