<p>ROME — Felix Auger-Aliassime “dug deep” to pull out a 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-4 win over Filip Krajinovic in the first round of the Italian Open on Sunday.</p>
<p>Auger-Aliassime wasted an opportunity to close the match out when he served for the second set at 5-4. In the third set, he placed bags of ice around his neck and on his legs to cool himself down amid warm conditions at the Foro Italico.</p>
<p>He finally closed it out after nearly 3 hours for his first win in Rome, having lost in the first round the last two years.</p>
<p>“You’ve got to believe and be resilient at times,” the Canadian said. “I wanted to win badly, so I dug deep and I found a way.”</p>
<p>Since he hired Toni Nadal as a coach, Auger-Aliassime has had first-round losses at the Monte Carlo Masters and the Madrid Open and reached the quarterfinals of the Barcelona Open.</p>
<p>Auger-Aliassime will next face Diego Schwartzman, a finalist when last year’s Rome tournament was held in September.</p>
<p>Also, 11th-seeded Pablo Carreno Busta beat Laslo Djere 4-6, 6-3, 6-1; 12th-seeded David Goffin defeated Italian wild card Salvatore Caruso 6-4, 6-1; and Reilly Opelka eliminated Richard Gasquet 6-1, 7-5 to end a six-match losing streak.</p>
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