Felix Auger-Aliassime on his newfound confidence: "When I defeated Djokovic, I needed to know why I managed to win; I needed to know what worked in my level of play" 

Felix Auger-Aliassime made a rather interesting observation about the nature of confidence, touching on how he studied his successes carefully to ensure that he knew what was working for him and what wasn't.

The Canadian continued his winning streak on indoor courts, recording his 16th straight win on tour after knocking out Frances Tiafoe 6-1, 6-4 in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Paris Masters. Gunning for his fourth title in as many weeks, the 22-year-old has turned his year around after a poor start, even qualifying for the ATP Tour Finals with some late fireworks.

Speaking at his press conference after the win over Tiafoe, the World No. 8 was asked about the source of his newfound confidence, and whether it was simply momentum or something more concrete.

Auger-Aliassime is of the opinion that these two types of confidences feed off each other, even if the latter is more important. He pointed to his recent win over Novak Djokovic at the Laver Cup to prove his point, revealing that he studied the match in detail to figure out exactly why he won and how exactly he beat a player as good as the Serb.

"It's very, very relevant what he's saying. And it's true that confidence could be something in the air that we can't pinpoint, but I thought about it after Laver Cup when I defeated Djokovic," Auger-Aliassime said. "I needed to know why I managed to win. It was not just a good day, that I was in the clouds, that I managed to serve on the right wave. No, I needed to know what worked in my level of play to defeat a player like Djokovic at the Laver Cup."

From there on, it was a simple question of sticking to the aspects that he was good at for the Canadian, which was made further easier by the fact that he had more conviction in himself after the victory.

"After thinking about it, when I saw what worked well, the improvements that I needed still to achieve, I managed to have structural confidence, concrete items. And I tried to continue to work like this with a lot of conviction," Auger-Aliassime said. "It's true that we can do it on a good streak. There are still difficulties though. I managed to walk the talk and to make sure that it became real, and this is why I managed to be confident."

"When there were crunch moments, high-pressure moments, when people depend on me, I manage to deliver" - Felix Auger-Aliassime

Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Rolex Paris Masters

Felix Auger-Aliassime has been exceptionally good at team events in 2022, first winning the ATP Cup with Canada followed by wins over Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic at the Davis Cup and the Laver Cup respectively. The Canadian attributes that to the fact that he doesn't want to let his teammates down at any cost, which allows him to scramble hard and perform better than he usually does.

"When I'm on court, I don't play only for myself. I also play for a team. And maybe that actually is in line with my personality," Auger-Aliassime said. "When I play for co-team members I feel more focused. I manage to step up my game, to scramble hard, and to give the effort that I really need to perform."

The 22-year-old was proud of himself for the way he continuously manages to come through during crunch situations, delivering his very best when there are people counting on him. It adds another dimension to the World No. 8's confidence, as knowing that he can push himself to any extreme when there are others depending on him makes him play with a lot more conviction.

"For the Laver Cup, I think it was a trigger, because matches are expected from one's self, and my team members expected a lot from me," Auger-Aliassime said. "Same thing for Davis Cup. Being a leader of the team, I wanted to have the qualifications for my team. Same thing for the last one when I played against Djokovic."

"When there were crunch moments, high-pressure moments, when people depend on me, I manage to deliver, to give the best of what I can. That actually helps me have more confidence in myself," he added.