Arthur Fils finally made it past his first round at the French Open! This year, after some ups and downs on the court since his Australian Open R3 exit, he’s found momentum. He reached the quarterfinals in Indian Wells and then the semifinals in Miami during the Sunshine Double, then kicked off the clay season with another quarterfinal in Monte Carlo, followed by a semifinal in Barcelona. But a lingering trouble keeps standing in his path—and now, it’s resurfacing at Roland Garros.

On Thursday, the Frenchman is taking on Spain’s Jaume Munar. It’s their second face-off in a draw, with Fils leading their head-to-head 1–0. The stakes are higher—not just to build on that lead, but to make a statement on a Grand Slam stage. The Frenchman took the first two sets off the Spaniard, both in tiebreakers: 7-6(3), 7-6(4). But Munar regained control and took the third set 6-2! What caused the dip in Arthur’s stride?

Well, during the changeover before the fourth set, Fils walked off the court for a medical timeout! An X user reported, “Arthur Fils goes for a off-court MTO. Earlier it was just a quick massage during changeover. Right thigh issue. Jaume Munar won 3d set 6-2.” This injury isn’t new.

Back in February, the Frenchman confirmed his withdrawal from the ATP 250 tournament in Marseille—and that wasn’t the only setback. The 20-year-old also had to pull out of the ATP 500 event in Doha, putting his early-season plans on hold.

Arthur Fils took to Instagram to share an update with fans, posting a brief story: “Injured at the Rotterdam tournament, I have to withdraw from the Marseille and Doha tournaments. Now it’s time to recover and start again stronger,” he wrote.

Could this injury be the reason he’s struggling on the Parisian clay now? Only time will tell.

Update: Despite a concerning 0-6 loss in the fourth set, Arthur Fils demonstrated immense resilience to power through and win his second-round match at the French Open with a 6-4 victory in the fifth set, advancing to the third round for the first time in his career.

The match statistics highlight his tenacity, as he served 2 aces and won 61% of points on his first serve, ultimately converting 5 of 13 break-point opportunities against Jaume Munar. This creates another notch in their H2H (now, 2–0 in Fils’s favor) and holds a 3–1 five-set record at majors.

But with his injury, will he be able to keep up the momentum? At the age of 20, he’s certainly made his mark, but a grand slam is no small stage. It seems like Arthur Fils is taking inspiration from his fellow Frenchman to help him power through!

Arthur Fils reveals what pushed him to victory

After his win against the Spaniard, the young Frenchman revealed drawing inspiration from none other than Gael Monfils. “I was in the five set and I was thinking of Gael,” Fils shared on court. “Gael had to turn around a lot of matches in five sets. So I thought, Arthur, this is yours. You have to do the same. Go for it.” In his opening match, the 38-year-old veteran staged a classic comeback after dropping the first two sets 4-6, 3-6. He stormed back, grabbing the next three sets—including a tense fourth-set tiebreak—and finally broke Hugo Dellien’s resistance, closing it out 6-1, 7-6(4), 6-1. And he’s done it on multiple occasions before!

On the other hand, it’s been a rapid rise for Arthur Fils. He hit a career-high ranking of World No. 14 in April 2025 and leads the French charge at Roland Garros. His trophy case already boasts three ATP singles titles—the Lyon Open (2023), Hamburg European Open (2024), and Japan Open (2024). He’s made his mark at the Slams too, with a fourth-round finish at Wimbledon (2024) and third rounds at both the Australian Open (2025) and now in Paris.

But while Gael’s perseverance played a part, Fils was full of gratitude for the fans. “I don’t really have a lot of words. It’s thanks to you guys. Even if I was leading two sets to zero… I knew it was very physical. I entered the 2nd set tiebreak not feeling very well,” he admitted. But he kept his head, focused on the fight, and found a way through.

Next up, Arthur Fils could face Andrey Rublev or Adam Walton in the third round. With the Parisian crowd behind him and momentum building, can he keep this dream run alive? Drop your thoughts in the comments!