Montrealâs Félix Auger-Aliassime, the newly-minted top-ranked Canadian tennis player, is now gracing the online pages of Vogue.
Barely old enough to have a drink, heâs currently ranked , according to the latest Association of Tennis Professionals Tour rankings which were released on Monday.
Auger-Aliassime jumped past Milos Raonic of Thornhill Ont., who moved down two spots to 22nd in the world rankings.
In other words, the 19-year-old could soon be giving the current kings of the court Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic a run for their money. And now, his story is being featured in the iconic fashion and lifestyle magazine.
The âFélix Auger-Aliassime Is Taking Tennis by Stormâ explains that he and his sister Malika picked up the sport from their father and tennis teacher, Sam.
âHe just transmitted his passion to us. I donât really have a memory of not playing,â Auger-Aliassime told the magazine.
He started playing when he was just four years old. And when he was very young he recalled telling his dad from Togo: âI want to be a professional tennis player.â
âWhat I like most about the game is its competitive side. Itâs a duelâlike chess or like gladiators. Itâs two players confronting each other and finding solutions, and I really like that,â Auger-Aliassime added.
He grinded his way through the circuits in Quebec City and Montreal and competed in several international tennis tournaments, before he was noticed by Federer â his hero and 20-time Grand Slam champion.
The Swiss tennis legend invited Auger-Aliassime to a training camp in Dubai in 2017 where the teen was understandably star struck.
âAs a kid, you see Federer with such distance, heâs almost like a divinity,â Auger-Aliassime told Vogue. âBut for me to talk to him and play with himâit reduced this distance a little bit.â
Although topping his hero -- like fellow Canadian tennis star Bianca Andreescu recently beat legend Serena Williams -- could be a whiles away, Auger-Aliassime has been quickly making a name for himself.
Most recently, he played in Wimbledon as the 19th seed and earned his first victory as a pro in the Slams before he was stopped by French player Ugo Humbert in the third round of the warmup event.
Before that, without breaking a sweat, he beat out widely-praised up-in-comers Stefanos Tsitsipas, Grigor Dimitrov, and Nick Kyrgios at the Queenâs Club Championships in June.
But for now, Auger-Aliassime is just focusing on improving before heading into the upcoming
âObviously the winning part is great, but thatâs not everything,â he says. âThe best thing for me is the sound of a ball that has been hit well.
With files from The Canadian Press
At just 19-years-old, , who is ranked 23rd in the world, is taking tennis by storm:
â Vogue Magazine (@voguemagazine)