Brussels
Auger-Aliassime fuels Turin chase with Brussels triumph
Canadian is ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin
October 19, 2025
Belgaimage
Felix Auger-Aliassime becomes the first man to win multiple titles at the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open.
By Jerome Coombe
Felix Auger-Aliassime took the long road to victory on Sunday, but he did so in style to capture the title at the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open in Brussels.
The 25-year-old Canadian outlasted Jiri Lehecka 7-6(2), 6-7(6), 6-2 to firmly reignite his bid to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. Auger-Aliassime couldn’t convert two championship points in the second-set tie-break, but ultimately regrouped to carve out a clinical win for his third ATP Tour title of the season.
FAAbulous 🇨🇦
2022 champion @felixtennis becomes the first player to win multiple titles in tournament history at the @BNPPFEUOpen#BNPPFEuropeanOpen pic.twitter.com/1u1ily1kE8
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 19, 2025
“It’s the final, so we put everything on the line. I feel like we were both extremely focused from the beginning,” said Auger-Aliassime. “It was a high level for two sets, then you don’t know how things can go… But I’m obviously glad.”
With his two-hour, 34-minute victory, Auger-Aliassime jumped to ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, narrowing the gap to Lorenzo Musetti to just 330 points as the battle for the season finale heats up. However, he will like his chances during the European indoor swing.
The triumph marks Auger-Aliassime’s eighth ATP Tour title — tied with Milos Raonic for the most among Canadian men in the Open Era — and his sixth on indoor hard courts. He owns the most wins on indoor hard courts (76) since the start of the 2020 season, highlighted by consecutive titles at the ATP 500 in Basel.
In a serve-dominated final in Brussels, Auger-Aliassime was able to lean on his trademark first-serve power and razor-sharp groundstrokes to regroup in the deciding set. Across the final, he hit 17 aces and saved all three break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
“I have so much respect for him as a person, as a player,” Auger-Aliassime said of Lehecka, whom he leads 2-1 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series. “He’s a great guy. Since he’s been on Tour, we’ve gotten along very well, so credit to him and his team, they do a fantastic job.”
Auger-Aliassime’s 2025 campaign has been a rollercoaster. After roaring into the season with titles in Adelaide and Montpellier, a dip in form midway through the year raised questions. But since late summer, he has looked rejuvenated — reaching the US Open semi-finals and Shanghai quarter-finals before his run to a second title at the Belgian ATP 250.
For Lehecka, it was a familiar heartbreak on Belgian soil. The 23-year-old Czech, who lost last year’s final when it was held in Antwerp, couldn’t capitalise on the stretch of big hitting that led him into a third set.
