Felix Auger-Aliassime wins Adelaide International final to capture 6th ATP Tour title
Montreal native defeated American Sebastian Korda in 3 sets
Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime has won the Adelaide International, beating American Sebastian Korda 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 in the final.
The 24-year-old Montrealer used his big serve to capture the victory, firing 10 aces and winning 75 per cent of his service points across the match.
Both players struggled with break points, with No. 2 seed Korda converting just 1 of 5 and Auger-Aliassime going 3 for 10.
The win capped a solid tournament where the world No. 29 beat American Taylor Fritz in round-robin action before topping France's Arthur Cazaux, Marco Giron of the United States and Adelaide's top seed, American Tommy Paul.
WATCH | Auger-Aliassime victorious in Adelaide:
Winning the Australian Open tune-up tournament marks the sixth ATP singles title of Auger-Aliassime's career and his first on outdoor hard courts.
The Canadian will kick off his first Grand Slam of the season Sunday when he faces Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff in first-round play.
Rain suspends early Australia Open matches
Heavy rain forced the suspension of matches on outside courts Sunday about an hour into the first day of the Australian Open, including Canadian Leylah Fernandez's match against Yuliia Starodubtseva of the Ukraine. Fernandez was leading 5-3 in the first set when play was halted.
China's Zheng Qinwen, the Olympic champion and runner-up here last year, was able to continue playing 20-year-old qualifier Anca Todoni on Rod Laver Arena, one of three covered stadiums at Melbourne Park.
The pair had just finished the pre-match formalities on the main show court, including the coin toss overseen by Australian tennis great John Newcombe, when play was delayed by a few minutes so that the roof could be closed. The match resumed with the No. 5 seed winning 7-6 (3), 6-1
They continued indoors. When it started to rain outside, it poured. Spectators scrambled for any cover they could find, and tournament organizers suspended play on all outside courts until at least 2 p.m. local time.
Showers were forecast to continue into the evening.
With files from the Associated Press
