Félix Auguer-Aliassime will take on Jannik Sinner on Sunday afternoon in the final of the 2025 Paris Masters. The two will vie in front of 17,500 spectators to hoist the prize for the first time and add his name to a list of victors that includes Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi.
Those legends lifted the trophy when the event was held in Bercy, south-eastern Paris.
Along with the kudos of brandishing one of the nine most prestigious titles on the men's circuit after the four Grand Slam events in Melbourne, Paris, London and New York, Auger-Aliassime or Sinner will also provide fodder for the tennis quiz nerds as the first man to win the 56-player extravaganza in its new home at the Paris La Défense Arena (PLDA).
"There was the possibility that if we stayed in Bercy that the Paris Masters 1000 might be downgraded," said tournament director Cedric Pioline of the decision to relocate to Europe's largest indoor arena.
"We simply needed to be able to evolve. The 2025 Paris Masters will certainly be a year of discovery for everyone but step by step, we’ll refine everything we need to make it grow in its new home. This is just the beginning."
By the fourth day of the 2025 Paris Masters, organisers boasted that they had surpassed last year's attendance record of 176,000.
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"We've exceeded the symbolic threshold of 200,000 tickets sold," said a French Tennis Federation (FFT) spokesperson.
"The federation is delighted with the enthusiasm shown by the spectators who have followed the tournament to the Paris La Défense Arena.
One of those very same assets, Chloe Bossaert, hailed the new offering as she milled around the stadium precinct on the north-western fringes of Paris.
"Before the match, it was a bit more a bit more like a nightclub," beamed the 23-year-old tennis teacher from Amiens, northern France.
"Neon lights, music and lights dazzling all around over the court ... it's a different atmosphere but honestly, really good."
Victor Lemoine, a fellow teacher at the ASPTT club, added: "First impressions are ... it's all really good. A completely different atmosphere from what you get at the French Open."
Rafael Nadal effectively annexed that tournament between 2005 and his final appearance in 2024.
The Spaniard won a record 14 men's singles titles. But as he was establishing his hegemony at the Roland Garros stadium some 10km south of the PLDA, the French Open's movers and shakers reconfigured the event to include night matches preceded by DJ music sets or the beatbox rappers Berywam.
In spite of the innovations, the perennial lament persists at the French Open of rows of empty VIP and hospitality boxes on the show courts while fervent fans fail to secure seats to watch the stars.
"It's not been like that here at all," beamed Bossaert. "Here, there are courts where we don't have numbered seats. So it's first come, first served. Whereas at the French Open all the boxes right at the front are for sponsors and so on.
"They're not necessarily people who really know anything about tennis, and all the tennis fans end up at the top behind them. So that's a bit of a shame. Whereas when you get here, it's really first come, first served.
"When we were at the match between [Ben] Shelton and [Andrey] Rublev match, there were all the young people, all the tennis fans, right at the front. So I found that brilliant. It's much nicer."
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Sinner, the world number two, dispatched Shelton 6-3, 6-3 on Friday night in the last eight. And the Italian swatted aside the third seed and defending champion Alexander Zverev 6-0, 6-1 on Saturday to progress to his ninth Masters 1000 final.
Auger-Aliassime's passage to his second Masters 1000 final also came in straight sets. The ninth seed saw off the 13th seed Alexander Bublik from Kazakhstan 7-6, 6-4.
"All finals of Masters 1000s are a dream," said Auger-Aliassime. "And especially in Paris, a tournament with so much history and so many important past champions."
Sunday's clash will be his sixth encounter in three years with 24-year-old Sinner. The Canadian has prevailed in three of them but lost their most recent match in four sets in the semi-final at the US Open in New York in September.
"It’s always great to play guys like Jannik and to see how my game matches with theirs," said the 25-year-old who reached a Masters 1000 final in Madrid in 2024.
“You have to be so sharp, tactically, and with discipline. Jannik doesn't give you anything, so you have to be ready to play you’re A-game.”
