Carlos Alcaraz’s seventh Grand Slam title acquisition has been taking all the discussion in the tennis world, but there’s a whole sport still going on. Yet, this week has the potential to be an important milestone in tennis’s future. Arthur Fils returns to the our after a six-month hiatus.
Arthur Fils Returns From Injury
A Montpellier Appearance
Fils is competing in Montpellier, where he will face Valentin Royer in the first round of the Open Occitanie. Felix Auger-Aliassime and Flavio Cobolli will also be in action as the top two seeds, the Canadian looking to defend the title after beating Aleksandar Kovacevic in a final set tiebreak last season.
In reality, Fils hasn’t played in a fit state since before Roland Garros last season. In the clay court season run up, he was showing promising signs that he could be a major factor at the top end of the game in the coming seasons.
Sometimes, players just have that certain star quality about them. It’s intangible and often subjective. Although, when you watch Fils play, you can’t help but feel that there is a future star in the making.
His radiant personality lights up the court. His powerful shot-making leaves the crowd in awe. To put it simply, if you were taking someone to watch tennis for the first time and wanted to maximise their chances of coming back, you would take them to watch a Fils match.
A Promising 2025
It’s not just the intangibles, though. He reached World #14 last season after some impressive clay court form. He reached the Monte-Carlo quarterfinal, losing to eventual winner Carlos Alcaraz in a deciding set tiebreak. He lost to the same opponent at Barcelona two weeks later.
He arrived at Roland Garros in a good place to flourish in front of his home crowd. He beat Nicolas Jarry in four sets and set up a second round with Jamie Munar. He edged out two opening set tiebreaks and all was seemingly heading towards a straight-sets win.
However, as the third set began, it became clear that all wasn’t well. His movement stiffened and his power decreased. two sets later, he had won just two games in total. A deflated home crowd watched on, their home man’s prospects seeming hopeless.
Yet, from nowhere, he channelled a set of high intensity tennis, taking the third by 6 games to 4. It would be as far as the journey went though; a lower back stress fracture forced him to retire from the tournament.
The Return
Only now, nine months later, does he return to court 100% fit. He explained on a YouTube Channel series named Renaissance,
“I’d prefer to come back at 100% rather than returning too early. I’m 21, I still have around 10 to 15 years of career so it’s not a race. I work with a lot of people to try to start fresh … and I think that now I’m on the right track, so I’ve got to continue.”
It’ll be interesting to see just what version of Fils turns up. Naturally, you would expect a bit of ring rust. With the French Open in three months, it provides a useful target to be up to speed for.
Once he returns to the level he was at least season, he will look to develop in certain areas of his game that could make the all-important difference. In particular, bringing an element of control to his aggression would be very beneficial.
He is ambitious and bold; he wants the world #1 slot, the grand slam, the whole lot. Yet, as his quotes shows, he has maturity with an old head on his shoulders. It’s all about baby steps for the next few months. Nevertheless, it’s an exciting return for the ATP Tour for a star of the future.
Main Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
