The entire semifinal lineup at the Mutua Madrid Open is surprising–the most shocking part being a matchup between Jiri Lehecka and Felix Auger-Aliassime.
It’s safe to say that both players have been living right in Madrid. Auger-Aliassime benefited from a very favorable draw in the early rounds, beating Yoshihito Nishioka and clay-court novice Adrian Mannarino. The 23-year-old Canadian then went up against Jakub Mensik instead of Grigor Dimitrov and got a second-set retirement from the teenager. Auger-Aliassime’s best win of the season came in round four at the expense of Casper Ruud, as the world No. 35 pulled off a 6-4, 7-5 upset. Auger-Aliassime’s friendly draw should have ended in the quarterfinals, but his good fortune continued when top seed Jannik Sinner withdrew due to a hip injury.
The story has been similar for Lehecka. The 22-year-old ousted Hamad Medjedovic and Thiago Monteiro before taking advantage of a less than 100 percent Rafael Nadal with a 7-5, 6-4 victory. That propelled Lehecka into the quarterfinals, where he got a retirement from Daniil Medvedev because of an apparent hip issue.
Lehecka has not been required to showcase his best stuff so far this fortnight, but he has been very good in 2024 and really dating all the way back to the start of 2023. The Czech is up to No. 31 in the rankings and he is projected to reach a career high of 22nd even if he loses on Friday. He is 17-8 this year with a quarterfinal run in Indian Wells and a title in Adelaide.
Friday marks just the second-ever meeting between Auger-Aliassime and Lehecka. They previously squared off in round four of the 2023 Australian Open, with Lehecka surviving a 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(2), 7-6(3) thriller.
Auger-Aliassime is starting to find his game again on the heels of a slump that has lasted for the better part of two years, but Lehecka is the far more consistent and reliable of of the two players right now.
Pick: Lehecka in 3
