Auger-Aliassime's coach: "It's hard to maintain Nadal's intensity"
Felix Auger-Aliassime, the youngest player in the ATP top 100 and World No. 30 at only 18-years-old, was bypassed this Wednesday in the draw of the Madrid Open by Rafael Nadal. In the first of their encounters on the circuit, the Canadian bowed in two 6-3 sets to the Spaniard—of whom he had hanged a poster in his room, some years ago.
Despite the straight lost, this second round match is considered “a good experience” by Frederic Fontang—one of Auger-Aliassime’s coaches.
In an interview to Punto de Break, Fontang explained, “It was a good opportunity for Felix, playing against someone like Rafa because this way we can see what he has to improve in his game. We saw that it’s hard to maintain his intensity. He’s very aggressive and doesn’t leave you many free points.”
When asked how he prepares a clay match against someone like Nadal, the French coach remained clear, “We follow the same routines. We won’t change our training sessions or the video study, but with Nadal, obviously, it’s a special challenge. [...] Felix was very excited to play against him but 95% of our routine was the same.”
The former World No. 59 reflected on the conclusions to draw from Auger-Aliassime’s defeat against Nadal, “[Felix] has to learn to remain focused during the important points, like in the three-all and 40-15, when he made a couple of mistakes with his drive and lost some concentration. He also needs to maintain his intensity because against a top player as aggressive as Nadal you can’t lose it for a second.”
Fontang, who has coached Jeremy Chardy and Vasek Pospisil before Auger-Aliassime, is conscious that his Next Gen player has a long way to go. “We are building his base so it can be solid. The technical part as much as the physical part,” the French coach explains. “He has a lot of potential and quality, he is very young, but we have to keep working so he can become even stronger.”
However, Fontang doesn’t like the idea of communicating expectations for Auger-Aliassime’s career, “We don’t talk about that in the team. Each day we work to help him to be the best and to reach his maximum potential. He is very young and has a great level. Let’s hope that he reaches the top, but we take it with tranquillity. We will see what happens with him but to reach the top he needs to get better yet.”
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2HaGFsE
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