Italian Open 2022: Novak Djokovic vs Felix Auger-Aliassime preview, head-to-head, prediction and pick
Match details
Fixture: (1) Novak Djokovic vs (8) Felix Auger-Aliassime
Date: 13 May 2022
Tournament: Italian Open
Round: Quarterfinals
Venue: Rome, Italy
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Clay
Match timing: 8:30 pm local time, 6:30 pm GMT, 12:00 am IST
Prize money: €5,415,410
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Sports18 & Voot
Novak Djokovic vs Felix Auger-Aliassime preview
World No.1 Novak Djokovic will square off against eighth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarterfinals of the Italian Open on Friday.
The Serb has gradually played himself into form after a tough start to the season. He was unable to participate at the Australian Open, Indian Wells and Miami at the start of the year due to his vaccination status.
Djokovic began his season at the Dubai Tennis Championships. He made a good start, winning his first two matches but was beaten 6-4, 7-6(4) by Jiri Vesely in the quarterfinals.
The 34-year-old started his claycourt season in Monte-Carlo but was shocked by Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in his opening match. At home in Belgrade, he made the final of the Serbia Open with hard-fought victories over Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic and Karen Khachanov. But a tired-looking Djokovic fell to Andrey Rublev in the final.
At the Madrid Open, Djokovic looked to have regained his form, losing to Carlos Alcaraz in an intense semifinal.
The World No. 1 has looked at his imperious best at the Italian Open, easing past Aslan Karatsev and Stan Wawrinka in straight sets.
[1] @DjokerNole advances to his 16th straight QF @InteBNLdItalia with a 6-2 6-2 victory over Wawrinka. #Djokovic converted 5 of 7 break pts en route to his 20th career victory over the Swiss and 998th overall.
Next: 1st meeting vs [8] @felixtennis.
Felix Auger-Aliassime, on the other hand, had an excellent start to the year, helping Canada win the ATP Cup. After a quarterfinal exit at the Australian Open, the Canadian won his first ATP title at Rotterdam.
After a disappointing exit at the hands of Lorenzo Musetti in the Monte-Carlo Masters, the Canadian made the quarterfinals in each of his next three tournaments (Estoril, Barcelona and Madrid).
At the Italian Open, the eighth seed battled past Davidovich Fokina in the second round before easing into the quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Marcos Giron.
Novak Djokovic vs Felix Auger-Aliassime head-to-head
The two players have never met before, so the head-to-head currently stands at 0-0.
Novak Djokovic vs Felix Auger-Aliassime prediction
It is safe to say that Djokovic is now back to his best. The Serb struggled to find his rhythm earlier in the season but has looked magnificent in Rome this week.
The World No. 1 served well in his last match against Wawrinka, winning 75% of the points behind his first serve, and didn't double fault even once. More impressive, however, was his return of serve. Arguably the best returner of all time, Djokovic won 54% of his return points and broke Wawrinka five times.
Clearly, Auger-Aliassime has a big test ahead of him. The young Canadian excels on serve and will need to be at his best in that department on Friday. He will have to improve his first-serve percentage from his last match against Giron (70%) as Djokovic will likely punish his weaker second serve.
Auger-Aliassime's form has improved after a dip mid-season and he would welcome the opportunity to test himself against the best in the world. But Djokovic looks to have the bit between the teeth and isn't likely to stumble with another semifinal in sight.
Pick: Novak Djokovic to win in straight sets.