Felix Auger-Aliassime could be about to make a significant rise up the rankings, despite a mixed start to the 2026 season.
Auger-Aliassime suffered a first round exit from the Australian Open earlier this year, having retired from his match against Nuno Borges due to cramp.
The Canadian was able to bounce straight back after the Australian Open, with Auger-Aliassime winning his ninth ATP title in Montpellier.
Auger-Aliassime suffered a surprise defeat to world number 53 Terence Atmane in Miami, but he still has a huge opportunity to achieve his best ranking yet.
Felix Auger-Aliassime is in pole position to become world number three
Auger-Aliassime is the current world number eight, three places below his career-high ranking of world number five, but he could climb even higher.
Ahead of a busy clay court season, Auger-Aliassime is currently in pole position to be the third best player in men’s tennis after Roland Garros.
Who will join Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in a new ‘big three’?
This is because Auger-Aliassime only earned 280 points in a disappointing clay court season last year, having lost in the first round of tournaments in Monte Carlo, Munich, Madrid and Paris.
No other top 10 player has as little points to defend during the clay court season as Auger-Aliassime, and therefore he has the third most secured ranking points after the French Open.
This would put Auger-Aliassime behind Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, but is not currently clear as to what positions they will be in, with the Italian having a slight advantage.
| Top 10 ATP Players | Current Ranking Point Total | Points defending up to and including the French Open | Minimum ranking point total after the French Open |
| 1. Carlos Alcaraz | 13,550 | 4,340 | 9,210 (2) |
| 2. Jannik Sinner | 11,400 | 1,950 | 9,450 (1) |
| 3. Novak Djokovic | 5,370 | 1,720 | 3,650 (4) |
| 4. Alexander Zverev | 4,905 | 1,360 | 3,545 (6) |
| 5. Lorenzo Musetti | 4,365 | 2,350 | 2,015 (10) |
| 6. Alex de Minaur | 4.185 | 850 | 3,335 (7) |
| 7. Taylor Fritz | 4,170 | 570 | 3,600 (5) |
| 8. Felix Auger-Aliassime | 4,000 | 280 | 3,720 (3) |
| 9. Ben Shelton | 3,860 | 610 | 3,250 (8) |
| 10. Daniil Medvedev | 3,610 | 420 | 3,190 (9) |
Felix Auger-Aliassime has proven he can achieve positive results on clay
It could be argued that Auger-Aliassime is unlikely to actually capitalise on the opportunity he has due to the lack of form he showed on clay last year, but he has produced good results on the surface before.
This includes Auger-Aliassime reaching his first ever Masters 1000 final at the Madrid Open in 2024, as well as a quarterfinal run to the Italian Open in 2022.
Auger-Aliassime has also been in two other clay court finals, losing in both the Rio Open final and Lyon Open finals in 2019.
| Big clay court tournaments | Felix Auger-Aliassime’s Best Result |
| Monte Carlo Masters | Second Round (2019, 2022 & 2024) |
| Madrid Open | Final (2024) |
| Italian Open | Quarterfinal (2022) |
| Roland Garros | Fourth Round (2022 & 2024) |
The 25-year-old will be hoping to reach another clay court final this year, as Auger-Aliassime plays his next tournament at the Monte Carlo Masters, where he has only won two of his eight previous matches.
Auger-Aliassime is also entered into the Barcelona Open, where Jack Draper and Alcaraz are also playing, before returning to the Madrid Open, Italian Open and Roland Garros.
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