Felix Auger-Aliassime's impressive results for Canada: From beating Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev to chasing a medal at Paris Olympics 2024 

Felix Auger-Aliassime, the 23-year-old tennis player from Canada, reached the semifinals at the Paris Olympics 2024 by beating Casper Ruud 6-4, 6-7(8), 6-3 on Thursday (August 1). He also defeated Daniil Medvedev in straight sets in the third round, which means the Canadian has notched up two consecutive wins over higher-ranked players.

He will face Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinal on Friday, August 2, which could be a huge challenge, given that the Spaniard won the French Open in June and is in great form. However, Auger-Aliassime has already proved that he performs significantly better while representing his country.

Felix Auger-Aliassime has been ordinary over the last year and a half

The Canadian reached a career-high ranking of World No. 6 in November 2022 but had to deal with injuries thereafter. As a result, his ranking dropped. He is currently ranked 19th in the world and has failed to make it deep into Grand Slams and Masters 1000 tournaments.

He lost to Alcaraz in the Round of 16 at the 2024 French Open and did not play at the Wimbledon Championships. His biggest success this year remains reaching the final of Madrid Open, where he lost to Andrey Rublev.

The Canadian performs really well for his country

Felix Auger-Aliassime, however, typically raises his level while playing for his country. He is going to be 24 on August 8 and has already won the ATP Cup and Davis Cup for Canada — both in 2022.

He beat Alexander Zverev, a top player, en route to winning the ATP Cup in 2022 and prevailed over the likes of Alcaraz, Alex de Minaur, and Lorenzo Musetti at the Davis Cup. Felix Auger-Aliassime has a creditable win-loss record of 9-4 at the Davis Cup and is 8-2 on the hard courts in the tournament.

At the ongoing Olympics, he defeated Ruud and Medvedev to reach the last four, displaying a level that is higher than the one he otherwise exhibits.

As the Canadian has shown in the past, he is more comfortable playing on clay than the hard courts. He pushed Rafael Nadal in the fourth round of the 2022 French Open to take the match into five sets, though the Spaniard won. Hence, his chances of causing an upset against Alcaraz cannot be ruled out altogether.

Irrespective of the outcome of the match on Friday, Felix Auger-Aliassime will be in the contention to win a medal. He will also feature in the bronze medal match in mixed doubles, which speaks volumes of his performance while playing for his country.