Dubai
Auger-Aliassime units Medvedev SF in Dubai redemption bid, Griekspoor sinks Mensik
Canadian, who fell to Tsitsipas in final yr’s closing, improves to 11-1 in February
February 26, 2026
Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships
Felix Auger-Aliassime is into his third consecutive tour-level semi-final.
By Jerome Coombe
Felix Auger-Aliassime has no plans to gradual his scorching February run at this week’s Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
The in-form Canadian moved previous Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 7-6(2) on Thursday on the ATP 500 occasion, advancing to his third consecutive tour-level semi-final. After lifting the trophy in Montpellier and ending runner-up in Rotterdam, Auger-Aliassime now boasts an 11-1 report this month and stands simply two victories away from avenging final yr’s Dubai closing loss to Stefanos Tsitsipas.
2025: Finalist
2026: 🤔FAA returns to the final 4 in Dubai, knocking out Lehecka 6-3, 7-6(2)@DDFTennis | #DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/OJoPp7vUVc
— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 26, 2026
Competing as the highest seed at an occasion above ATP 250 stage for the primary time, the 25-year-old has proven little signal of nerves. He has but to drop a set by three matches this week and, towards Lehecka, he saved each break factors he confronted, in response to Infosys ATP Stats.
In Friday’s semi-final, Auger-Aliassime will meet third seed and 2023 Dubai champion Daniil Medvedev, who holds a 7-2 lead of their Lexus ATP Head2Headvert collection.
“We have very different game styles,” stated Auger-Aliassime, who went 0-7 versus Medvedev between 2018 and 2024. “I’m going to try to come forward, he will try and make me miss. We’ll see who gets the better of the game plan. He’s had the better of me… It took me seven or eight times before beating him.”
Most tour-level semi-finals (gamers born since 2000)
Medvedev launched Thursday’s quarter-final slate with a commanding 6-2, 6-1 victory over Jenson Brooksby, reserving his third Dubai semi-final in his previous 4 appearances on the ATP 500 match.
The former World No. 1 closed the 2025 season with a collection of regular outcomes — together with back-to-back semi-finals in Beijing and Shanghai and a title in Almaty — and is pushing towards a return to the Top 10 for the primary time since June. He opened 2026 with a title run in Brisbane and at present trails No. 10 Alexander Bublik by simply 345 factors within the PIF ATP Live Rankings.
“There were moments in my career when I was better prepared,” Medvedev stated when requested about his current consistency. “Funnily sufficient, they are saying ‘Rookies get lucky’. It was extra this sort of factor. Everything was new, I didn’t care… I used to be simply enjoying the way in which I felt.
“Now, I have a lot more thoughts in my head, which can help me sometimes, but sometimes I need to get rid of them to play better. I still know that I can be consistent. For example, at the end of last year I was super consistent, and even this year I am trying to regain it. This tournament is great so far.”
Andrey Rublev maintained his spectacular report in Dubai, shifting previous Arthur Rinderknech 6-2, 6-4 to advance to his fifth semi-final on the ATP 500 occasion.
The No. 18 participant within the PIF ATP Rankings lifted the trophy on the match in 2022 after which reached the ultimate in 2023. Aiming to clinch the trophy in Dubai for the second time, Rublev hit by Rinderknech to enhance to 4-0 within the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Headvert collection. He will subsequent face Tallon Griekspoor.
Griekspoor continued his resurgence with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 win towards sixth seed Jakub Mensik. Griekspoor went 1-5 throughout his first six matches of the season however then reached the quarter-finals in Rotterdam. In Dubai, Griekspoor has crushed second seed Alexander Bublik, sixth seed Mensik and Otto Virtanen. The 29-year-old is into the final 4 on the ATP 500 occasion for the second consecutive yr and was happy along with his stage towards Mensik.
“I thought I started off really, really well,” Griekspoor stated. “Broke him with a good game from my side. I didn’t really have any problems. It shifted a little bit in the second set, I didn’t make as many first serves and he started to serve better. At the beginning of the third set, I had to up my game, serve better, which I really did. In the end I started to return really well, so I am very pleased with the win.”
