Auger-Aliassime falls to Evans in Murray River Open final

Felix Auger-Aliassime, of Canada, reacts after losing a point. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

MELBOURNE, Australia — Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime lost to Great Britain’s Daniel Evans in straight sets 6-2, 6-3 in the Murray River Open final in Melbourne, Australia.

Auger-Aliassime, the third-ranked player at the tournament, was searching for his first ever ATP title in seven tries. However, 32 unforced errors and four double faults doomed the 20-year-old in the loss.

Canadians are now 0-for-8 in their last ATP tournament finals since Denis Shapovalov won in Stockholm back in 2019.

Evans, 30, won his first title in three tries. Evans was a finalist at the 2017 Sydney International tournament in Australia and the 2019 Delray Beach Open in the United States.

The Murray River Open served as a tune-up before the Australian Open, which begins Monday (Sunday night Eastern Time).

Auger-Aliassime will play German Cedrik-Marcel Stebe in his first match of the major tournament Monday, hoping to improve on his first-round exit in last year’s event.

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