Felix Auger-Aliassime overcame a late wobble at the Cincinnati Open to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets as he returned to action after 40 days off the court.

Auger-Aliassime came back from a back injury in a 6-3 7-5 win over the Greek, playing for the first time since losing a five-set thriller to Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon.

The Canadian did all the hard work at the very start of the first set, earning an early break to race into a 3-0 lead.

He stayed on serve thereafter, converting his first set point to take the lead.

However, the wind picked up in the second set, leading to a chaotic end as he twice surrendered a break advantage.

Auger-Aliassime had the chance to serve for the match at 5-4 up, but found himself pegged back by Tsitsipas. 

He immediately broke his Tsitsipas' serve in the next game, getting over the line from there.

Smooth sailing @felixtennis is through to the next round in Cincinnati after a comprehensive victory over Tsitsipas.@CincyTennis | #CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/1DGYcseeH0

— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 16, 2026

Taylor Fritz will be joining him in the next round after he cruised past compatriot Alex Michelsen in straight sets.

Fritz, who fell in the first round of the Washington Open last time out, earned a 6-3 6-4 win over Michelsen in 86 minutes.

He overcame a break in the opening game by winning the next four and never looked back from there.

Joao Fonseca will also play in the third round after he found a way past Botic van de Zandschulp.

He needed one hour and 48 minutes to get past the Dutchman, with a second-set tie-break eventually splitting the pair as Fonseca avoided a decider.

Fritz continues strong Cincinnati form, while Auger-Aliassime settles straight back in

In the past decade, Fritz (94) has claimed the most ATP Masters 1000 match wins of any player from outside Europe. 

And he has now won five of his previous nine opening main-draw matches at the Cincinnati Open, and this was a much-needed victory after his struggles last week.

This was just his fourth ATP Masters 1000 win of 2026, but this is a stage that Auger-Aliassime thrives on.

He has won four of his five opening matches at ATP Masters 1000 events in 2026, last losing to Mariano Navone in Rome. 

And since last year's Cincinnati Open, only two players have claimed more ATP Masters 1000 match wins than Auger-Aliassime (18) – Jannik Sinner (40) and Alexander Zverev (26), and he will be hoping to continue his strong return to the court ahead of the US Open.