Team Canada Wins ATP Cup

Monfils, Nadal earn titles in Adelaide, Melbourne, respectively

January 10, 2022 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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Photo Credit: Darren Carroll/USTA

 

The ATP Cup title belongs to Team Canada, after Felix Auger-Aliassime clinched the championship for his country via a 7-6(3), 6-3 victory over Roberto Bautista Agut on Sunday.

The Canadians defeated Team Russia on Saturday, and relied on wins from Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov on Sunday to down Team Spain. Prior to Auger-Aliassime’s victory, Shapovalov beat Pablo Carreno Busta 6-4, 6-3 to put Canada ahead.

“The emotions are unbelievable. There’s no better feeling than winning. We left everything out there,” said Auger-Aliassime. “We came back from far in this competition, losing our first four matches. But we never stopped believing.”

Earlier in the tournament, Team Canada lost its first four matches, and were on the verge of being eliminated prior to the semifinals. But based on other results, the team was able to make its way into the final four, and capitalized on the chance.

“We trust each other to the highest level. Denis and I, everybody in the team — Brayden [Schnur] played in singles, Steven [Diez] played in doubles and they’ve been supporting us all week,” Auger-Aliassime added. “They’ve got a tournament next week, but they’re here every day ready to practice, ready to support us. All their egos are aside and we really trusted each other along the way and it came down to the perfect result. I’m super thrilled for everybody in the whole team and myself, of course.”

Elsewhere on the ATP Tour, Rafael Nadal defeated American qualifier Maxime Cressy 7-6(3), 6-3 to win the Melbourne Summer Set title.

“I want to thank all the organization here. I feel privileged and a very lucky guy to be here again,” said Nadal, who hadn’t played since August. “I am coming back from some challenging moments in terms of injuries, so I can’t be happier. It means a lot to be back and with a trophy in my hands.”

Over in Adelaide, France’s Gael Monfils defeated Russian Karen Khachanov 6-4, 6-4 to win the Adelaide International title. Monfils earned his first title since 2020 as he didn’t drop a set throughout the tournament.

“I want to say thanks to my team,” Monfils said during the trophy ceremony. “We have had some tough moments, we lost a little bit of faith but we came back strong from July last year. It is amazing to play in front of you guys, to play in front of a full crowd with a good spirit and atmosphere, this is amazing.”

 


Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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