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It was eight years ago, almost to the day, that 17-year-old Félix Auger-Aliassime squared off with 27-year-old Milos Raonic in a clash of Canadians that signaled the arrival of the next wave.
Sitting in the stands that day in 2018, between Auger-Aliassime’s coach Frédéric Fontang and his father Sam, was a tall, kind of gawky kid.
The 16-year-old, Gabriel Diallo, was galaxies away from even contemplating a professional tennis career.
It was another year before he peaked in the juniors – if you can call a ranking of No. 581 living in a nation that sets great store on junior results and spends a lot of money on its kids to travel the world chasing points, a peak.
Diallo, growing to his eventual height of 6-foot-8, was injured a lot. He didn’t even play juniors that entire 2018 season until the fall. Identified as a prospect early on by Tennis Canada, they pretty much gave up on him.
And so Sam Auger-Aliassime, who has an academy in Quebec City gets a bit of a kick out of taking kids the federation casts aside and seeing what he can do with them, took him in. Diallo moved there to train. And on this occasion, Sam Auger-Aliassime brought him along to Indian Wells as FAA tried to qualify for the biggest tournament of his career. He had just one previous appearance at the ATP 1000 level before that, and it had come nearly two. years ago, when he was 15, in the qualifying in Toronto.
Fast forward eight years and Auger-Aliassime has been established in the top 10 for big chunks of the last 5-6 years. Diallo, the late bloomer, went to college at the University of Kentucky and there, became a true prospect. Last August, he reached a career high of No. 33.
The two met, in the second round of the 2026 BNP Paribas Open on Sunday night, almost as peers.
Diallo didn’t even play that well – far roo many errors on the forehand, not enough success at net. But still he swiped the first set away before Auger-Aliassime went on to a 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3 win.
That puts the 25-year-old in the round of 16 against the No. 30 seed, France’s Arthur Fils.
So it wasn’t to be any sort of changing of the guard – even though Auger-Aliassime is just a year older than Diallo, it’s almost like he’s in a different generation.
But his path for Diallo to get back to Stadium 3 shows you that even if you’re not the biggest hotshot in the juniors, even if you’re a late bloomer physically, even if people give up on you at times, the dream is there for taking if you believe and work your butt off.
Of course, talent helps, too. And a big serve. But a lot of athletes at this level have those things.
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