Third time is a charm for De Minaur as he beats Auger-Aliassime to win Rotterdam title – Tennis Now
The third time was dominant. Appearing in his third Rotterdam final, Alex de Minaur made the most of his opportunity, defeating Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-3, 6-2 to claim the 11th title of his career and his first in Rotterdam.
“Third time lucky,” De Minaur said on the pitch after his second career victory in five appearances against Auger Aliassime. “I’m really excited. It’s been a great week in Rotterdam; it’s a place I always feel good about and I’ve been just one step away from it in the last few years – it feels great to finally lift the trophy.
“I’m trying my best to deal with the situation. That’s what I do; I’m improving every day and I’m very happy with my performance today.”
De Minaur dropped just 14 points on serve in the one-hour, 17-minute match and never faced a break point.
“I’m happy that I was finally able to win the title,” said De Minaur. “This is one of my favorite spots on the calendar. I love playing here in Rotterdam; I played some of my best tennis and it finally paid off.”
There was no reward for Auger-Aliassime, who was broken once in each set and looked sluggish from the start. De Minaur broke serve at 4-2 in the first set and couldn’t hold back from then on, winning eight of the next ten service points to seal the first set.
In the fifth game of the second set, De Minaur broke love and hit a forehand into the empty court to win. Auger-Aliassime left the game to request a medical timeout to treat his upper left thigh. It’s a window into what might be holding him back with opportunities scarce for the Canadiens.
The 2022 champion enters the final on an eight-match winning streak after winning last week in Montpellier, but he will not win any more matches.
“Congratulations to Alex and your team; we’ve played a lot over the years,” the 25-year-old Canadian said. “I tried my best today, but you went a little too far.”
De Minaur, the first man to reach the Rotterdam final three years in a row, won his 11th ATP title and his first indoor title. After losing to Jannik Sinner in the 2024 final and Carlos Alcaraz last year, the Australian finally took the crown.
| rank | player | ATP title |
| 1 | Rod Laver | 72 |
| 2 | John Newcomb | 41 |
| 3 | Ken Rosewall | 40 |
| 4 | Lleyton Hewitt | 30 |
| 5 | Tony Roach | twenty one |
| T-6 | Alex de Minaur | 11 |
| T-6 | Patrick Rafter | 11 |
| T-6 | Mark Philippoussis | 11 |
He is now tied with Patrick Rafter and Mark Philippoussis for sixth place in the history of Australian men’s singles ATP titles.
