Felix Auger-Aliassime said that he didn’t receive any special tips or advice from coach Toni Nadal before his match versus Rafael Nadal.
On Tuesday, Auger-Aliassime defeated Nadal 6-3 6-4 at the ATP Finals.
After losing to Nadal in their first two meetings, Auger-Aliassime clinched his first victory over the Spaniard on the main level.
Earlier this year, Auger-Aliassime fell short to Nadal in five sets at the French Open.
After falling just short of beating Nadal at Roland Garros, Auger-Aliassime managed to get the job done against the Spaniard in Turin.
Auger-Aliassime if Toni Nadal gave him any special advice
“We talk about the things I need to do for myself, at the end of the day he doesn’t give me [tips]- him or Fred [Frederic Fontang]. I know Rafa. I’ve seen him play. I’ve watched him play. I’ve played him before. If I play him or play Djokovic or even players that I’ve known for a long time, Fred, my coach, gives me the stats of previous matches, what has been working, what hasn’t been working, so I can have a little bit of a clear idea. Outside of that he [Toni Nadal] didn’t give me a secret that nobody knows (smiling). That’s it, so, nothing really special. More just for me to try to give my best effort, to feel like I did everything I could when I step out of the court, win or lose. That’s the most important for him and for us on the team,” Auger-Aliassime explained.
Auger-Aliassime has now won his last two meetings versus Nadal.
This past summer, Auger-Aliassime defeated Nadal at the Hurlingham exhibition.
However, the reason why Nadal now owns a 2-1 head-to-head record versus Auger-Aliassime is because exhibitions are not counted in the official head-to-head records.
By beating Nadal at the ATP Finals, Auger-Aliassime improved to 1-1 in Turin.