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Match details
Fixture: (2) Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jenson Brooksby
Date: 5 August 2021
Tournament: Citi Open 2021
Round: Third Round (Round of 16)
Venue: Washington DC, United States
Category: ATP 500
Surface: Outdoor hard
Prize money: $1,895,290
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jenson Brooksby preview
Second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime will take on local wildcard Jenson Brooksby in the third round of the Citi Open in Washington on Thursday.
Auger-Aliassime will be looking to bounce back after a disappointing first-round loss at the Tokyo Olympics. The Canadian is still searching for his first tour-level title, but he has looked in good form this year.
The 20-year-old is now at a career-high ranking of World No. 15 and boasts a win-loss record of 24-15 in 2021. He has reached two finals this year, at the Murray River Open in Melbourne and Stuttgart, as well as the semifinals in Halle.
He then went on to reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, his best-ever performance at a Major.
He kicked off his American hardcourt swing with a hard-fought three-set win over Andreas Seppi.
His next opponent, Jenson Brooksby turned professional last year, and is currently ranked outside the top 100. But he has posted strong results of late and is capable of springing an upset or two in Washington.
The 20-year-old American won Challenger titles in South Africa, Orlando and Tallahassee before qualifying for the main draw at Roland Garros. He then posted his best tour-level result in Newport last month, beating the likes of Denis Kudla and Jordan Thompson en route to the final.
Brooksby has carried that form into Washington, where he beat Kevin Anderson and Frances Tiafoe in straight sets to set up a meeting with Auger-Aliassime.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jenson Brooksby head-to-head
The third round encounter in Washington will be the first match between Felix Auger-Aliassime and Jenson Brooksby, so their head-to-head currently stands at 0-0.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jenson Brooksby prediction
As the second seed, Felix Auger-Aliassime comes into this encounter as the firm favorite. However, he has to be wary of Brooksby, who is in red-hot form.
The 20-year-old Canadian is equipped with a powerful forehand and strong serve, which should work well on the quick hardcourts in the American capital. However, he struggled on serve in his opener against Seppi; he landed just 55% of his first serves and was broken thrice. He will need to work on that aspect of his game if he is to make a deep run this week.
Brooksby may not be the most powerful player on tour, but his incredible foot speed and movement allow him to get plenty of balls back into play and frustrate his opponents. He also has plenty of variety in his game that can disrupt Auger-Aliassime's rhythm from the back of the court.
The American comes into the match high on confidence and will have the backing of a vocal crowd. But Auger-Aliassime should have enough firepower to douse the challenge of the young American and advance to the quarterfinals.
Prediction: Felix Auger-Aliassime to win in three sets.
