Dominant second set leads Auger-Aliassime over McDonald in Halle

HALLE, NORTH RHINE-WESTPHALIA, GERMANY – Canadian tennis star Felix Auger-Aliassime rode a dominant second set to a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over American Mackenzie McDonald on Wednesday at the Halle Open.

Auger-Aliassime overcame 15 unforced errors, most of them coming in the first set, with 15 aces and 41 winners.

The Montreal native, seeded fourth at Halle and ranked ninth in the world, broke McDonald three times in the second set, with the last coming in the final game of the match.

Auger-Aliassime saved the only break point he faced.

Both players held serve throughout the first set to set up the tiebreak, which McDonald led 7-6 before Auger-Aliassime won the next three points — the first two on return.

That momentum carried over into the second set, where Auger-Aliassime won six straight games after McDonald opened with a hold.

Auger-Aliassime will face fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland in the quarterfinals of the ATP 500 grass-court event. Auger-Aliassime leads the career series between the players 2-0.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2022.