Canadians Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov progressed to the quarterfinals of the Swiss Indoors in Basel, Switzerland, after securing straight-set victories on Thursday. Auger-Aliassime, a two-time champion, dominated with 28 aces in a 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5) win against Marin Cilic from Croatia. The Montreal native impressively won 96% of points on his first serve without facing any break points. This win extended Auger-Aliassime’s winning streak to six matches indoors following his recent triumph at the Brussels tournament. As the fifth seed, he remains in contention for a spot at the ATP Finals in Turin.
Meanwhile, Shapovalov also showcased his skills with a 7-6 (5), 6-2 victory over Valentin Royer of France, where he delivered 11 aces. The player from Richmond Hill, Ont., broke his opponent three times and secured 76% of first-serve points. Shapovalov is set to take on Joao Fonseca from Brazil in the next round, while Auger-Aliassime will face Jaume Munar from Spain, who caused an upset by defeating second-seeded Ben Shelton 6-3, 6-4.
If Auger-Aliassime and Shapovalov triumph in the quarterfinals, they are poised to meet in an intriguing all-Canadian semifinal showdown.