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At 16, Montreal's Félix Auger-Aliassime is the youngest junior US Open boys' champion in history

The 16-year-old wins the junior US Open Sunday with a crushing 6-3, 6-0 win over Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia.

NEW YORK – Less than 24 hours before, 16-year-old Félix Auger-Aliassime was tired, overheated and fighting a losing battle with a cold. His nose had been bleeding on and off, and he was severely disappointed at losing the US Open junior doubles final with friend Ben Sigouin.

But he was in the singles final, with a chance to write a happier ending than he did back in rainy Paris in early June when he had three match points before losing to France’s Geoffrey Blancaneaux.

The recuperative powers of a teenager are a wondrous thing, aren’t they?

The kid from Montreal came out in his second junior Grand Slam singles final of the season and crushed No. 5 seed Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia 6-3, 6-0 to win the junior US Open title.

Here's what it looked like.

It is the second consecutive junior Grand Slam boys’ singles title for Canada, after 17-year-old Denis Shapovalov (who was not here) won at Wimbledon in July.

“Yeah, I think it was one of the best performance I have had. And also in the final you never know what can happen. You know, you don't always play your best level because you're a bit nervous and there is something big to go get,” Auger-Aliassime said. “But, yeah, I just stayed really steady. My serve, first-serve percentage, was really high today. I had a few aces, so of course it helps.”

The celebration was solid.

At 16, he’s the youngest to ever win the boys’ title in New York, although not the youngest to ever win a junior Grand Slam title. And he did it the hard way, struggling through early poor form, and physical issues, and a cold, and the heat, and some of the quality opponents.

“It was kind of difficult at some points, but that's where you have to mentally stay calm, stay on your feet, and just take it one day at a time,” he said.

Auger-Aliassime is congratuled by mother Marie Auger after winning the boys' singles final at the US Open Sunday. (Stephanie Myles)
Auger-Aliassime is congratuled by mother Marie Auger after winning the boys' singles final at the US Open Sunday. (Stephanie Myles)

The crowd was sparse for the final, which began just a few minutes before the titanic men's final between Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka (won by Wawrinka).

The previous day against world No. 1 Stefanos Tsitsipas, there was a large crowd of kids cheering him on and when he needed it, he was able to draw energy from that. That energy might not have been there on Sunday. But he didn't need it.

“I have to give him full credit for playing a match like that – especially for such a great start. We didn’t expect it would go so quickly. You get surprises in tennis sometimes when you hang in there the way he did this week,” said Auger-Aliassime’s coach Guillaume Marx. “It was very hot. It was really tough at the beginning of the tournament. He really wasn’t playing well.  But when he wasn’t playing well, he wouldn’t let go.”

On the mental side, this tournament was a big step up for the teenager even from the Wimbledon semi-final two months ago, when he began well but appeared to run out of gas both physically and mentally in losing to Aussie Alex de Minaur.

Auger-Aliassime expended a lot of physical energy in that match – but even more mental energy when things started going south. In the end, in the third set, he didn’t have much left.

At this tournament, he seemed far less dependant on looking over at Marx after most every point, good or bad. His energy was channelled into his tennis and his countenance – on the outside at least – seemed calm, and controlled. Almost imperious at times.

“It’s the aspect we’ve worked on the most the last few weeks. He didn’t play that well this summer. It was difficult. We talked about that this week nearly every day – about his mental, about the state of mind he heeded to have. After three or four days, he was still alive in the tournament, and then he began playing better and better,” Marx said.

There’s no doubt his last two opponents, quality players both, felt it.

Kecmanovic was the most gracious of runners-up, something all the kids can take a lesson from. (Stephanie Myles/opencourt.ca)
Kecmanovic was the most gracious of runners-up, something all the kids can take a lesson from. (Stephanie Myles/opencourt.ca)

Tsitsipas – two years older and with a lot more professional experience – wasn’t able to stand up to it in the semis even if the kid from Greece looked both nervous and a little weary after a lot of matches this season.

Kecmanovic is one of the top juniors and also is playing a lot more pro events than the Canadian. But he couldn't find a solution, either.

The Serb managed only two break points against the Canadian's serve and only served at a 47 per cent success rate himself which, despite some good velocity, wasn’t going to get it done given the way Auger-Aliassime attacks his opponents’ second deliveries.

“It was tougher at the beginning of the week. I had a three-setter in the second round that could have gone either way. That’s where I really had a good mental match because my game wasn’t there,” Auger-Aliassime said. “It’s even better (to win) when you have a difficult physical week. Things weren’t simple. On the mental side I made a big effort.

“Even when I wasn’t playing well, even when the conditions were difficult, I played each point to the max.  That’s the reason I’m here today,” he added.

What’s next?  A few days off and then to Hungary for the junior Davis Cup finals.

He, Shapovalov and Sigouin took the title a year ago. At just 16, he’s the only one still eligible.

His goal was to win one junior Grand Slam title during his junior career.

That bucket-list item is checked off now, at 16 – which seems neither early, nor late, but just at the right time.

It may be time to move onto the next phase, Auger-Aliassime said although he didn’t rule out playing the junior Grand Slams again next year.