C. ALCARAZ/F. Auger-Aliassime
6-2, 6-4
THE MODERATOR: We'll go straight to questions, please.
Q. You played with Carlos and Jannik in this tournament. Could you please tell us about the difference you have found playing with them on this surface.
FELIX AUGER-ALIASSIME: I mean, the ranking doesn't lie. They're the two best players. That's the facts. Different game styles, but both put extreme pressure on their opponent in different ways.
Yeah, I don't need to get into even how they play. We all know. We've seen them for the last few years. We know what to expect.
They keep showing up and playing good, so credit to them.
Q. You've shown in these four months you are one of the players who can hang to be the third one behind Carlos and Jannik. Do you think you can show it in Australia, too?
FELIX AUGER-ALIASSIME: Future will tell. It's great progression I've had this year. Like, I've always believed, since I'm a kid believed, and my ambition was to win Grand Slams and be No. 1 in the world.
I've had ups and downs, but honestly through it all I always believed I could be there. I still believe today. Now it's a matter of, yeah, doing the right things to improve. If I do, we'll see where that leaves me.
Q. Is that the goal then for next year, close the gap to those top two and be a real factor at the slams again?
FELIX AUGER-ALIASSIME: Everybody's good. I can't just focus on these two. Everybody above me, below me, young guys coming up. It's high competition every year. You can have bad luck.
But of course when I play these guys right now, the facts are they're a level above everyone. Yeah, I'm going to need to put some work. I've never been afraid of some work, so it's all good.
Q. If you had to resume your season, what would it be?
FELIX AUGER-ALIASSIME: Back where I belong. Back where I feel like I can play with more consistency. Really happy to be part of this tournament, to have played that way in the last few months. Yeah, happy with the progress.
The journey goes on.
Q. We all know how Carlos and Jannik play. Specifically on Carlos, what was the most challenging tonight?
FELIX AUGER-ALIASSIME: I mean, for a guy who was doing everything well, but I remember let's say three or four years ago, everybody was saying, The serve, the serve. He's serving crazy good. He did that amazing. The rest of the game has always been good.
He can change directions with both shots. He puts pressure on you in a different way. You don't know what to expect. He's playing at a very high speed. I think that was most challenging.
Q. Canada was a strong team in the past years in Davis Cup. Do you see yourself committing more for the Davis Cup in the future or, like many other players, you would like to change something, to play every two years, whatever?
FELIX AUGER-ALIASSIME: Two things:
Yeah, I've had success in the past. It's always a pride to play for my country. Many times I have to protect my health. I was injured or not healthy to play Davis Cup.
On the other point, all I know is that to do something special, it needs to be rare. To do something special, it needs to be rare. Olympics, World Cup, it's every four years. If you have something every year, it's not going to be as special. That's it.
Thank you.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports