Felix Auger-Aliassime has become the 10th and final star in Netflix’s new series to crash out of the Australian Open.
The Canadian sixth seed was beaten in four sets – 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 6-7 – by Czech underdog Jiri Lehecka early on Sunday morning UK time.
Auger-Aliassime was the last man standing after all nine of the tennis players in Break Point, including the injured Nick Kyrgios, American ace Taylor Fritz and Maria Sakkari were all eliminated from the Melbourne tournament.
Felix Auger-Aliassime has been knocked out of the Australian Open, losing against Jiri Lehecka
The Canadian sixth seed lost in four sets – 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 6-7 – vs Czech underdog Jiri Lehecka
He becomes the 10th and final player who featured in Netflix’s new Break Point docu-series to be eliminated from the Melbourne Grand Slam early – with some tennis fans calling it a ‘curse’
Streaming giants Netflix are calling it a ‘coincidence’ but fans are convinced players featured in the docu-series are jinxed after Auger-Aliassime and Sakkari became the ninth and 10th players from the show to suffer an early Australian Open exit.
The 10-part docu-series, which aired on the eve of the Melbourne Grand Slam, focuses on the lives of some of tennis’ biggest names across the 2022 season.
But for the 10 featured in the first five episodes it has been a rough start to 2023 with three missing the tournament injured, six more being eliminated by the third round and now Auger-Aliassime knocked out in the fourth.
Heading into Friday, Sakkari was one of two survivors from the dreaded ‘Netflix curse’ and she could not escape its clutches as she lost 7-6, 1-6, 6-4 against Zhu Lin, in what was the Chinese star’s first ever top 10 win.
Maria Sakkari became the latest big name to fall victim to the ‘Netflix curse’ sweeping tennis
Netflix’s social media team were quick to call the unfortunate form of players a ‘coincidence’
Sixth seed Sakkari looked to have taken back control in a dominant 6-1 second set but the Greek soon lost her way again and she was just the latest early casualty from the stars of the Netflix series.
Before the Melbourne Slam even started three players – Nick Kyrgios, fellow Aussie Ajla Tomljanovic and Spain’s Paula Badosa – withdrew through injuries sustained in the lead-up.
No 13 seed Matteo Berrettini was the first competitor to fall, losing an epic 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (10-6) match to Scottish superstar Andy Murray.
From there, Casper Ruud, the No 2 seed, was eliminated in four sets by American rising star Jenson Brooksby.
In the first five episodes of Netflix’s new Break Point documentary, 10 players were featured
Already, with five players out, tennis fans began mocking up graphics showing the ‘curse’ as one-by-one players stumbled to losses.
American star Taylor Fritz, who represented the US’ best chance of a men’s singles winner in Melbourne, bristled when, after his first round win, the idea of the Netflix ‘curse’ was put to him.
‘Actually, I didn’t know that was a [thing],’ Fritz said sarcastically before his second round match.
‘Obviously I noticed the people pulling out of the tournament, but I didn’t know it was a thing, like, I’m going to lose my first round because I’m in the Netflix show? I didn’t think of that.’
Two of the stars – Paula Badosa (left) and Ajla Tomljanovic (right) – had to pull out with injury
It left Auger-Aliassime as the only player yet to succumb to the ‘curse’ – but he is now out too
He may well have paid more attention to it as he would join the rest of the Netflix crew in bowing out early with title hopes extinguished by home favorite Alexei Popyrin.
But further drama would follow Thursday when first world No 2 Ons Jabeur crashed out, losing to unseeded Marketa Vondrousova.
Murray later claimed his second Netflix victim by taking out Thanasi Kokkinakis in the longest match of the Scot’s career, an epic five-hour-plus battle.
That left just Sakkari and Auger-Aliassime – and now both have succumbed to the dreaded ‘curse’.