In advance of his 2025 US Open semifinal clash with world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, Felix Auger-Aliassime pretended to ponder his opponent’s game.
“I mean, strengths and weaknesses... Jannik, not many strengths, huh?” joked the man known as FAA, a wry acknowledgement of his opponent’s prowess. “A lot of weaknesses in his game.”
Known for his affable demeanor—and lethal forehand—Auger-Aliassime secured his first US Open semifinal berth since 2021 the hard way. As the No. 25 seed, he had to upset three Top 15 players to get there, including No. 3 seed Alexander Zverev, No. 8 seed Alex de Minaur, and No. 15 seed Andrey Rublev.
That run came to an end on Friday night, with the Montreal native challenging, but eventually falling to, No. 1 seed Sinner. Final match score: 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Even without a trip to Sunday’s final, this has been an outstanding tournament for the 25-year-old Canadian. And within 30 minutes after the semifinal loss, he was able to reframe the disappointment—and smile through his press conference.
“I have no regrets,” he said. “I played my way. I played my game. You kind of live and die with your choices, you know?”
FAA was especially pleased with how he’s improved since he lost to Sinner, 6-0, 6-2, at the Cincinnati Open, the tournament that directly precedes the US Open.
“In Cincinnati, we hadn't played in years, and it was like I was caught by surprise, in a way,” he recalled. “We hadn't practiced once in three years. So there's one thing to watch a guy, but to be on the court with him and just the way he was returning, how fast he was playing, it just caught me off guard a little bit.”
Just three weeks later, in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Auger-Aliassime made the match much more competitive. “We were fighting out there. We had some good points. I was going toe to toe at times, some sets dominating,” he said.
He also pointed to his improved mentality in the heat of the match—in his words, “the belief… the conviction in myself that I have what it takes to win these types of matches.”
Playing an important role on one of the world’s biggest stages also gave FAA the chance to re-introduce himself to tennis fans. Four years ago, the Canadian grabbed the spotlight after reaching a string of Grand Slam quarterfinals (2021 Wimbledon, 2021 US Open and 2022 Australian Open). That success earned him his career-high ranking of No. 6 in the world. But a few fallow years followed—and his ranking had dropped to 27 when he entered the tournament in August. (Good news on that front: He’ll leave New York at No. 13.)
And there’s an even more meaningful event on the horizon for Auger-Aliassime. He will marry his longtime girlfriend, Nina Ghaibi, in a ceremony to take place in Marrakesh, Morocco, in the weeks after the US Open ends, according to People Magazine.
