Felix sinks Shelton to set Alcaraz clash, Hurkacz notches 200th win

Felix Auger-Aliassime produced one of his best performances of the season on Saturday at Roland Garros, where he swept past Ben Shelton 6-4, 6-2, 6-1 to set a fourth-round meeting with Carlos Alcaraz.

After rain suspended play on Friday night in Paris, the Canadian resumed his clash with the American under the roof on Court Suzanne-lenglen holding a 5-4 first-set lead. Auger-Aliassime quickly held to seal the opener before he outplayed Shelton in the second and third sets in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.

The 23-year-old struck 28 winners and took advantage of a below par performance from Shelton, who hit 36 unforced errors according to Infosys Stats.

"For me today the things that were in my control I did really well," Auger-Aliassime said. "I am pleased with how I handled the match and gave him difficulty. I was able to put a lot of returns in and force his targets on first serve. He was not getting as many free points on that serve that he usually gets, so we had to engage in a rally every time and I think that paid off as the match went on."

With his one-hour, 52-minute win, Auger-Aliassime set a clash with Alcaraz. The Canadian leads the Spaniard 3-2 in the pair’s ATP Head2Head series, but Alcaraz has won their past two clashes.

By reaching the fourth round in the French capital, Auger-Aliassime matched his best result at Roland Garros (2022). Earlier this season the No. 18 player in the PIF ATP Live Rankings enjoyed a run to the final on clay in Madrid.

Following Auger-Aliassime’s victory, Hubert Hurkacz stepped onto Court Suzanne-Lenglen to resume his third-round clash with Denis Shapovalov. The eighth seed ultimately prevailed 6-3, 7-6(0), 4-6, 6-1 to clinch the 200th tour-level victory of his career.

The Pole had led by two sets overnight but soon found himself in a fourth set after Shapovalov rallied from 1-3 down to clinch the third set. Yet Hurkacz responded superbly, racing to the finish line after converting both break points he earned in the deciding set.

The 27-year-old Hurkacz, who lifted his maiden ATP Tour crown on clay in April in Estoril, is now 29-11 for the season. He will take on Grigor Dimitrov next in Paris as he chases his first Roland Garros quarter-final appearance. After also being held up by the rain on Friday, the 10th-seeded Dimitrov finally overcame Zizou Bergs 6-3, 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-4 on Saturday evening to book his fourth-round spot.