Still, his coach, the experienced Frederic Fontang, knows that Auger-Aliassime isn't just another anonymous pro. "He has a reputation," Fontang told TENNIS.com. "That's the consequence of his performances. It's something natural. At a high level, players are used [to] social media, press."
But Fontang acknowledges that the visibility provided by social media is something that now has to be taken into account when developing a promising player.
"The social media is something you have to have under control," Fontang said. "If you are reading everything, sometimes your energy can drop, it can be negative things. But, when you have good maturity, you can make the difference between the positives and the negatives.
"This is the case of Felix."
That's because he considers Auger-Aliassime's mentality to be as solid as his shots.
"Felix has great athletic qualities, and he also has good maturity, a good education," said Fontang. "For his age, he can stay composed on the court and also off the court talk about a lot of things."
That includes "movies, philosophy, books," said Fontang, drawing a little look from Auger-Aliassime sitting beside him, but who nevertheless agreed.
"It's true. We talk a lot," he said.
Embed from Getty Images
While Auger-Aliassime now receives more attention and demands, the teenager is still concentrating on developing his game, which is based on big serving and big forehands.
"I'm an aggressive player, but I think the coverage of the court is something I have been working on," he told press. "And I think it's paying off now with the big guys, you know, to be able to cover the court, to move well, and then to defend and stay in the points. That's something that, you know, that helps me a lot."
During the offseason, Auger-Aliassime received official designation as a player to watch when he was invited to train with Roger Federer. It was a valuable week for the top prospect, but he injured himself following the session and had to delay his start the season.
As he worked his way back and attempted to join the upper ranks, he received encouragement from fellow Canadian teenager Denis Shapovalov, who has been on a similar road. The pair are such good friends Shapovalov refers to them as "brothers," and have had dinner and played ping pong this week at Indian Wells.
"I told him to keep grinding. If he wins a couple of these matches, he'll get his confidence," said Shapovalov. "His game is more than good to be Top 100."
That's something Auger-Aliassime has been showing this week, and with his win over Pospisil, he'll get to face Canada's top player, Milos Raonic, in the biggest meeting of his young career. Either way, it will cap a milestone week.
"Firsts are always good. You know, get your first win, you break the ice. And then after, it's like the next time I'm on the stadium, it's something I have seen before. Next time I'm playing in front of so many people on live TV is something I have seen before. So I think that's going to help me in the future, obviously."
Those firsts seem likely to keep coming.
