Auger-Aliassime: "Losing always hurts, but at home it is more disappointing"

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It's been a very strange season for Felix Auger-Aliassime. Despite winning two titles at the beginning of the season, that performance has not been reflected in the major events on the circuit, such as the Grand Slams or the Masters 1000. This week, at the ATP Toronto 2025, the Canadian didn't even get past the debut against an inspired Fabian Marozsan, deepening further into those doubts that always arise in the biggest events. After suffering one of the most painful defeats of the season, the Montreal native gave his explanations in a press conference about his ups and downs and the disappointment of not performing well in a big tournament at home.

Defeat with Marozsan

“It's been a mix of things we both did, I mean, I don't play alone out there. It's not like I'm shooting hoops with my coach, there's always an opponent trying to win, and this time, he did better than me, especially dealing with the conditions. Obviously, you all know it was very windy, which caused me not to serve well, leading to getting broken. Surely, he coped much better than me with all those aspects. It's frustrating because I arrived early in Toronto precisely to adapt to those conditions, probably had more hours of preparation than any other player, never crossed my mind something like this. The wind is something you can't control, but it's the same for everyone. There's no point complaining now about the conditions in Toronto”.

Disappointment in the home tournament

“Losing a match is always painful, but losing here at home, in Canada, is much more disappointing. Here you feel like you want to play as many matches as possible, so losing in the opening match is always tough, very tough. Obviously, I've been through this situation many times in my career, but you never learn to feel better, so it's not an easy moment. Also because, in the end, we're talking about a Masters 1000 tournament, alongside the Grand Slams, they are the tournaments you want to play and do well in, but things aren't working out this season. Now it's time to prepare for Cincinnati, there's no other option”.

It wasn’t nerves

“Maybe we could blame pressure if I had a horrible start, but I had a good start. I don't know, sometimes it's true that you feel those nerves, but then, how did I manage to play well in the early games? In my head, I thought I was handling it quite well, but then he started adapting much better to the game, let's say he found the formula to navigate it better. I saw him hitting the ball, and it was as if there was no wind; he played high-risk tennis, and it worked out great, maybe I was too conservative. I think if I were to replay this match, I wouldn't do things very differently; it's just that sometimes the opponent is too good”.

Seeking his best version in Grand Slams

“It's not easy after a week like this, where I believe I did my best during the days of training prior. I'm working on all aspects, including my strengths, but this is the challenge that sports always present to you. You can do your best, even today I feel like I did everything possible on every point, but sometimes it's not enough. On one hand, I need to give credit to my opponent; on the other hand, delving a bit deeper, I leave knowing where I can find solutions within myself. I'm not a big believer in taking a magic pill to become the best player in the world, it doesn't work like that suddenly. In the end, it all comes from within, and each one has to figure it out, that's it”.

The void left by Pospisil in the Davis Cup team

“We know he always brought great energy to the locker room, great passion, so we'll miss that part, for sure. Obviously, in doubles, we've always had great specialists here in Canada, whether with Daniel Nestor or even before Daniel, but Vasek had become that guy you could always count on in crucial points. Now we're a good group, a young team, guys with great weapons and a lot of strength like Gab (Diallo), Denis (Shapovalov), and me. Surely, we'll solve that issue if we manage to play together more often”.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Auger-Aliassime: “Perder siempre duele, pero en casa es más decepcionante”