Auger-Aliassime, the latest victim of the Netflix “curse” in an Australian Open that knocks down the favorites

The protagonists of breaking pointthe new series of Netflix which allows you to spy (and understand) what life was like for some of the best tennis players in the world in 2022, they can feel like in a horror moviein the style of Final destination. One by one, the members of the flyer with which the on-demand platform launched the first season on 13 January suffered elimination from the Australian Open. This Sunday, the last ‘victim’ was the Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassimeseeded sixth, who lost to the Czech revelation in four sets Jiri Lehecka (71st).

Lehecka has landed in Australia with a 0-4 in his Grand Slam appearances, but is already in the quarterfinals after a win with runs of 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3)in three hours and 14 minutes of gameplay.

“All the guys I’ve beaten here, they’re all amazing players, so I have to play my best tennis.”commented Lehecka, after beating the Croatian Borna Coric (21) and the British Cameron Norrie (11) in the previous rounds, results that will allow him to climb at least 32 positions up to position number 39 in the ATP rankings.

“We will see him often in the future”said Auger-Aliassime, who had been the Argentine’s executioner Francis Cerundolo in the third round of the Australian Open, but remained out of contention, ‘fulfilling’ the prophecy that began last Friday regarding who promoted the first season of the series showcasing the intimacy of the professional tennis circuit.

“And then there was one. #CurseNetflix”wrote journalist Bastien Fachan, author of the book “Big 3” on Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, published on November 3, 2022, on his Twitter account. “Looks like the movie Final Destination”a follower responded to the fact that Auger-Aliassime was the only one competing after the first week of the Grand Slam.

Seeded sixth in the tournament, the Canadian was no stranger to the “curse” being talked about in Melbourne. And this Casper Ruud, Ons Jabeur and Matteo Berrettini were some of the players who appeared in the Netflix series and fell at the start of the tournamentwhile Nick Kyrgios, Paola Badosa Y Ajla Tomljanovic They didn’t even play.

“My girlfriend showed it to me today, I didn’t know. I noticed there were some players who were losing, but didn’t think about it until he showed it to me this morning. I thought it was funny,” said the 22-year-old Canadian after the match with Cerúndolo.

The previous elimination came on Friday when China’s Lin Zhu (87th in the world) surprised by qualifying for the round of 16 with a thrilling win over the Greek Maria Saccari (6th) for 7-6 (3), 1-6 and 6-4.

“I don’t know, I don’t think it’s related. Perhaps the players who have lost feel that there is some connection. I don’t think so, but yeah, it’s funny how things go sometimes“, argued Auger-Aliassime, before the ‘curse’ fell on his intentions in Melbourne this Sunday.

Unreleased disc and nightmare for the pre-classified

It’s a complicated Grand Slam for many seeds. This Sunday was also the end of the road for the Pole Iga Swiateknumber one in the world, and the young American Coco Gauffwho joined the long list of favorites eliminated from the Australian Open.

the Greek Stephen Tsitsipasthe seed that still resists, sweated an intense duel against the Italian Jannik sinner, who came back from two sets to take the definition to the fifth set 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3.

“I feel like I’ve spent a century on the court playing tennis. But what an amazing night! It was amazing!”assured the 24-year-old Greek, unbeaten in 2023 and who lost his first sets in the tournament in this match.

In the other quarterfinal, they will face the American Sebastian Rope (No. 31) and Russian Karen Kachanova (No. 20), which eliminated the Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka (#33) for 6-0, 6-0, 7-6 (7-4).

For his part Korda, executioner in the previous shift of the Russian Daniel Medvedevhe eliminated the Polish player in five hard-fought sets Hubert Hurkacz (No. 11) on a black day for the Slavic country.

But the blow was in the women’s box, where Swiatek, winner of Roland Garros and the US Open, succumbed to the blow of the Wimbledon winner, the Kazakh Elena Rybakina (No. 25), which won with a double 6-4.

Here’s how it was recorded an unprecedented event in the Open Era, which began in 1968: Top two seeds from both individual draws are eliminated in the quarterfinals after Swiatek and the Tunisian are eliminated On Jabeuris Spanish Rafael Nadal and Norwegian Casper Ruud.

The surprises didn’t end there: the Latvian Elena Ostapenko (17th) ended hopes of reviving a Grand Slam by Coco Gauff (7th) 7-5, 6-3 and went on to the quarterfinals of a major for the first time since 2018, where she will meet Rybakina.

Favorite now as the third seed, the American Jessica Pegula It didn’t fail and ended in two sets against the Czech Barbora Krejcikova (7-5, 6-2).

What shows the new Netflix series

In the same format as “Drive to Survive”the success that documents the lives of Formula 1 drivers for several seasons, in breaking point the protagonists are the footballers who open the doors of their privacy so that the fans have the opportunity to understand all the vicissitudes that professionals go through.

The first half of the initial season features four tournaments. And he traces them through the experiences of different protagonists with cameras that accompany them far beyond the courts.

The first two chapters take place at the Australian Open, the one shaken by the decision of the Justice to expel a Djokovic without vaccines. There, through the action of Melbourne Park, we understand a little more of the infinite rebellion of the ineffable Kyrgios, who in those days was deciding whether or not to leave tennis with its ghosts of childhood obesity and its times of revelers, and his cable land, Kokkinakis, with whom he had an unforgettable doubles tournament.

There is also talk of the dreams and frustrations of a couple of tennis players, such as the Italian Berrettini and the Croatian-Australian Tomjanovic -who was later the “villain” who put an end to Serena Williams’ career.

The season continues at Indian Wells, the tournament that is played in the California desert and is considered the fifth Grand Slam. There, the American Fritz, who will eventually win the tournament, and the Greek Sakkari and her struggle to make great history take center stage. It’s also where “Break Point” begins to delve into an increasingly visible problem in high-performance sport: the mental health of athletes who push their psyche beyond its limits to improve their game.

Fritz and his decision to play in the final injured and Sakkari and his retirement from tennis for less than a week are perhaps the pearls of a series in the great debt is not having had more access to privacy than Nadal, Djokovic, Federer or Serenawho appear not to have been tempted by the production portfolio to reveal their secrets.

Tunisian Jabeur, the first African and Arab to be successful in the women’s group, and Spain’s Badosa, then number two in the world, are the leitmotif of the episode that takes place in Madrid.

The last leg of this first half of the series takes place in Roland Garros. And those who show themselves behind the scenes of the second Grand Slam of the year are the Canadian Auger-Aliassime and the Norwegian Ruud. Through them, “close enemies” of Rafael Nadal, it is relived how the Spaniard once again worked his magic with his resilient tennis to reach 22 crowns in major tournaments.