Jakub Mensik has been on a roll at this year’s French Open, becoming the first man born in 2004 or later to reach the semis of a Grand Slam. Having arrived at the tournament with a win-loss record of 3-3 on clay, there weren’t many expectations around the 20-year-old. But he has now caused a stir at the tournament, especially after his 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 triumph over Joao Fonseca in the last 8. The performance was so remarkable that former ATP pro Andy Roddick felt compelled to shine a spotlight on him.

“I’m fully guilty of it, and I’ll lay on the sword on this one,” he said on the latest episode of the Served Podcast. “Because he (Mensik) is not super dramatic, because it’s not this flash in his scream and his yell, we don’t talk about him enough. He has won a Masters 1000, he has been streaky where he loses in the second rounds, and then he shows up, and I’m like, this guy is f****** good.”

During his clash against Fonseca, Mensik won the first two sets rather comfortably. However, things got a little tricky for him in the third set as he dropped his serve twice. But the Czech soon regained his composure and took a vital 6-5 lead. He was on the verge of winning the match in the 12th game but fumbled badly.

The youngster let a total of six match points slip during the game, allowing Fonseca to level up at 6-6 and drag the set to a tiebreaker. But the Brazilian couldn’t maintain his footing on the breaker as Mensik comfortably clinched it 7-3 to win the match in straight sets.

Analyzing the result, Roddick hailed Mensik for holding his nerve in the tiebreaker despite losing multiple match points in the previous game.

“He was fantastic. Like it’s this weird thing where you don’t expect people to not get nervous at all. He blew an overhead on one of the match points, like pulled it, yanked it bad. Everyone in the stadium knows it’s tight, he knows it’s tight or his legs aren’t working when he has to jump. Which means that it puts even more emphasis on winning that breaker because you don’t know what it looks like in the fourth set,” he added.

Mensik had burst onto the scene at the 2025 Miami Open, where he had recorded one of the most unpredictable triumphs of 2025. He defeated Novak Djokovic 7-6, 7-6 in the final to clinch his first-ever ATP title. This year, he’s already clinched one title at the Auckland Open against Sebastian Baez.

Still, his performances proved to be underwhelming at the Grand Slams as well. He suffered second-round exits at both the French and US Open. He also exited Wimbledon early in the third round before having to withdraw from his fourth-round clash against Djokovic at the 2026 Australian Open due to an abdominal muscle injury.

However, Mensik has now found his rhythm back in Paris and has had a grueling run at the Grand Slam so far. He had begun the tournament with a comfortable 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 victory over Titouan Droguet in the first round. However, things got very difficult for him in the second round against Mariano Navone.

The match was decided in five sets with Mensik claiming a dramatic 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 victory. But he fell on the court after the match point due to cramps and required immediate medical attention. He was taken off the court in a wheelchair, and there were serious doubts around his fitness at the time.

But Mensik put all the concerns to bed by racking up an impressive 0-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 win over Alex de Minaur in the third round, followed by a monumental 6-3, 7-6, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3 victory over Andrey Rublev to reach the quarterfinals. Interestingly, while predicting the men’s draw of the French Open, Roddick had backed Rublev to defeat Mensik.

Following the victory over Fonseca, Mensik is now set to take on Alexander Zverev in the semifinals.

Andy Roddick doesn’t want Jakub Mensik to train much for the SFs

Even after the stunning win, there are some lingering doubts over Mensik’s fitness, and he may not even be in his best shape as he heads into the encounter against Zverev. Hence, Andy Roddick believes that the Czech star doesn’t need to train at all on his first day off, as it will only lead to even more exhaustion. Instead, he came up with a training plan for Mensik ahead of his semifinal clash.

“One last thing on Mensik, he has two days off. If I’m his coach, I don’t even think you’re going to the courts tomorrow unless it’s for treatment,” he said on his podcast. “He doesn’t need to hit more tennis balls. Yeah. I think you get on the bike early, like when you wake up, and you go as slow as you want, as soon as that sweat breaks.”

During the match against Fonseca, Mensik appeared to shake off his leg to ease himself before serving at the end of the second set. This raised questions about his fitness, and hence, Roddick’s concerns are valid. In the post-match press conference, Mensik was asked about his injury, and while answering, he cramped a bit. Regardless, he confirmed that although he felt pain and discomfort, it was not something to worry about.

“Fortunately, it was just a tight muscle,” he said.

Mensik and Zverev will face each other for the first time since the R16 of the Madrid Open, where the German had triumphed 6-4, 6-7, 6-3. Hence, Zverev will be walking in as a favorite to win the match, not only because of his better ranking, but also because he has dropped just one set and has arguably been the most consistent player in the tournament so far.

Will Jakub Mensik be able to continue his dream run at the French Open, or will Zverev prove to be too good for him in the semis? We will have to wait and see.