French teenager Arthur Fils continued to enjoy the best week of his fledgling career with his 7-6 6-3 win over compatriot Quentin Halys on Friday in the quarterfinal of the Open Sud de France in Montpellier. The 18-year-old thus registered his third consecutive win in straight sets to announce his arrival in world tennis.
Arthur Fils will face second seed Jannik Sinner of Italy in the semifinals on Saturday. On that note, let’s take a look at how the quarterfinal match progressed.
How Arthur Fils Defeated Quentin Halys
Fils showed exceptional court-coverage in the first set:
If Fils gave a good account of his powerful forehand in his first two matches in the tournament, his exceptional movement on the court was displayed extensively in the first set against Halys.
The 26-year-old Halys made him move from side to side repeatedly in the first set, but Fils was equal to the task and kept retrieving the ball with consummate ease.
The younger Frenchman also hit a few outrageous winners, including a few great passing shots, to stun Halys. Still, to his credit, the older Frenchman fought well in the set to take it to a tie-break. Fils, however, managed to prevail in it though to take one step closer to the semifinal.
Fils’ groundstrokes did the trick in the second set:
The French teenager got to a flying start in the second set, breaking Halys in the second game and then racing to a 3-0 lead. He never surrendered the lead thereafter and managed to close the match out without much difficulty.
Fils hit a few stupendous down-the-line winners off either wing in the second set. His now famous forehand kept the pressure on Halys and he also hit the down-the-line backhand really well.
Halys was simply overpowered and outrun by his younger opponent on the day. The semifinal between Fils and Sinner promises to be an absorbing clash that the Italian might find difficult to win.
Main Photo from Getty.
