By Tony Fairbairn at Wimbledon
- Felix Auger-Aliassime ‘disappointed’ after early exit to Maxime Cressy
- Rafael Nadal recognises improvement after four set victory
- Coco Gauff a ‘better player after today’ as she edges past Ruse in three sets
LONDON, ENGLAND – Felix Auger-Aliassime admits he is ‘disappointed’ after losing his opening round to Maxime Cressy while Rafael Nadal and Coco Gauff take the positives from their tough wins
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Auger-Aliassime ‘disappointed’ after early exit
Our day two talking points starts with Felix Auger-Aliassime who was the biggest casualty who played today after he went out in four sets to an in-form Maxime Cressy. Cressy’s serve and volley style caused the Canadian problems with the Eastbourne finalist moving into the second round to face Jack Sock.
As for Auger-Aliassime exits at the opening round after reaching the quarter-finals last year. The sixth seed spoke about his disappointment after the match as he praised his American opponents serving:
“Yeah, it’s very disappointing, that’s for sure,” Auger-Aliassime said of his opening round exit in his press conference.
“But, you know, I just need to face the reality. The reality is I lost today, and there is nothing I can do anymore, even though of course I had higher ambitions for this tournament. But in order to one day win, you know, a tournament like this, I need to be able to beat players like today and many different players along the way. Yeah, just need to see what, yeah, what I can still improve to become better.
“I knew it was coming, but the quality of the serve was impressive, I have to say. I mean, I have played the likes of, you know, John Isner, Milos, Opelka, but he’s with these guys. You know, he’s definitely with these guys. So if he keeps that going, I mean, I see this guy being, even on hard courts, he’s going to be tough to play. Clay could be different, but, you know, but I see him, yeah, being like those guys, being able to be in the top 20 and more.
“We’ll see. He has really high qualities, better than his ranking today. Yeah, we will see how it goes for him. Today, you know, was not just a serve and volley. His serve was amazing. He took his chances when he needed to in important points. He was courageous, more than me, so he’s deserving.”
Auger-Aliassime will look to improve and get better ahead of the US hard court swing as he has semi-final points to defend in New York
Nadal seeks improvement as Berrettini Withdraws
Rafael Nadal started his Wimbledon campaign as he took on Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo. After winning the opening two sets, the Spaniard dropped the third set and it looked like he was going to be forced into a fifth set by the aggressive Argentinian. However Nadal won the crucial points and turned up where it matters most as he secured his place in the second round.
After the match Nadal commented on the match and admits improvement is key to winning the tournament:
“For me, I say the other day before the tournament start, no, every victory helps. Today was a victory. I spent a long time on court. I really hope that that will helps,” Nadal said of the match.
“Well, something expected because didn’t play on grass for three years. Being honest, he played at very high level for such a long time. He started to not missing balls, serving well, hitting great forehands, and especially great backhands. Normally he has a great forehand. But the backhand today on his side was great.
“I think, as I said before, I need to keep improving things. But at the end of the match I improved. At the most critical moment, I think I raise my level. That’s a very positive thing. Positive thing, I finished the match playing well.
“The last couple of games I raise up my level without a doubt. That’s give me the chance to end with a victory, no? But, yeah, very positive match for me. Of course, there is an important room to keep improving, but I am sure this match going to help.”
Nadal will play Ricardas Berankis in his second round but the Spaniard was also asked about another big thing that happened today and that was the withdrawal of Matteo Berrettini due to COVID. Nadal practiced with Berrettini before the start of the tournament and had the following to say on his withdrawal:
“Difficult to be a close contact when you are outside, when you are practicing,” Nadal told the press conference.
“For the moment I am feeling great, no problems at all. Main thing is I feel very sorry for him because he was playing fantastic, winning two tournaments before the tournament start. He’s a very good colleague on tour. We know each other well. I know how sad probably he will feel today, no? Sorry for him. Wish him a quick recovery. He was unlucky the last couple of months, without a doubt.”
Gauff taking positives from a tough win
Finally it was Roland Garros finalist Coco Gauff’s turn to step onto court as she took on Elena Gabriela Ruse in what looked like an easy opening round match. However it was anything but there as Gauff had to dig in deep to win 7-5 in the third in a two and a half hour match.
After the match Gauff told the press that it is an art to win matches like today:
“Yeah, it’s definitely an art just because, like, it’s impossible to play the best every day,” Gauff said.
“I feel like the last couple tournaments that I played, I’ve been playing, like, really good tennis. Today I think even though I lost against Iga, I lost against Ons, today I played even worse in moments of the match. I think that’s, like, what makes you a champion and what makes you get to that next level, is how you figure out how to win in these tough moments. I think today made me a better player.”
Gauff will play another Romanian in Mihaela Buzarnescu in the second round on Thursday. There were also wins on Tuesday for Iga Swiatek, Simona Halep, Petra Kvitova and Maria Sakkari.
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