Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime loses first match at Madrid Open

The clay-court season probably can’t end soon enough for Felix Auger-Aliassime.

The Canadian, seeded 18th, lost his third consecutive opening match at a tournament on clay, falling 7-6 (5), 6-4 to Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo on Friday at the Madrid Open.

Cerundolo, ranked 126th in the world, entered the week with a 1-4 record in tour-level, main-draw matches this season.

Auger-Aliassime won two smaller tournaments on hard courts to open the season, but hasn’t enjoyed the same success on clay.

Denis Shapovalov, the other Canadian man in the tournament, opens play in Madrid on Saturday against Japan’s Kei Nishikori.

Canada’s Bianca Andreescu plays her second-round women’s singles match later Friday against No. 10 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan.

Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion, returned to WTA 1000 competition this week after a six-month break to focus on her health. 

She opened with a 6-2, 6-4 win over American McCartney Kessler on Wednesday.

–with files from The Canadian Press

More from Sportsnet

Canada’s Diallo wins Madrid opener after late entry as lucky loser

Alcaraz blames ‘demanding sport’ for Madrid withdrawal, should be fit for French Open