Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime drops Stuttgart final against Marin Cilic

STUTTGART, Germany – Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime lost 7-6 (2), 6-3 to Croatia’s Marin Cilic in the final of the Stuttgart Open on Sunday.

The third-seeded Auger-Aliassime, from Montreal, fell to 0-8 for his career in ATP Tour finals. He hasn’t won a set in any of the championship matches.

Canadians have now lost their last 10 appearances in ATP Tour finals and are 1-20 in championship matches since Milos Raonic captured the Brisbane title in 2016.

Cilic, 32, captured his 19th career singles title and first since 2018 with the win in the ATP Tour 250 grass-court event.

Cilic, ranked 47th in the world, won 77 per cent of points when he got his first serve in, 10 per cent above the 21st-ranked Auger-Aliassime’s total.

Auger-Aliassime is scheduled to stay in Germany for a tournament in Halle this week. He’ll face Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz in the first round.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2021.