Fritz keeps his Turin hopes alive, beats Fils in Paris to set up Alcaraz quarter-final
Taylor Fritz, who needed the win far more than an already qualified Arthur Fils, beat the Frenchman 6-3, 6-4 to keep his Turin hopes alive and set up a quarter-final against Carlos Alcaraz.
Taylor Fritz, Rolex Paris Masters 2026 | © mma Da Silva/AP/SIPA
Taylor Fritz is still in the race to Turin. The 11th seed beat sixth seed Arthur Fils 6-3, 6-4 on Court Central on Thursday night to reach the quarter-finals of the Rolex Paris Masters and keep alive his hopes of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals. It is also the American’s 100th win at ATP Masters 1000 level.
On Friday, he faces second seed Carlos Alcaraz, who went through without playing after Matteo Berrettini withdrew.
Of the two players, only one really needed the win, and he got it. Fils, already qualified for Turin, had lived through an emotional Wednesday: he secured his place at the ATP Finals in the afternoon, then beat Tomas Machac in the evening and signed the camera with “Ici c’est Paris”. On Thursday night, he had a lot less in the tank.
Fils: “He just played better than me”
Fils ruled out any injury. “No, no injury. He just played better than me. I wasn’t comfortable on court, because he made me uncomfortable. He played a very good match and I congratulate him,” the Frenchman said in his press conference, held in French.
“It’s not as if I played a bad match,” he added. “He was just stronger than me, he served better and returned better. In the end, it’s two breaks, 6-3, 6-4. Not much to say.”
Fritz: “It’s how I want to play”
Had Fils won, Frances Tiafoe would have qualified on Thursday night. Fritz now has 3,050 points. He would pass Rafael Jodar (3,234) by reaching the semi-finals and Tiafoe (3,390) by reaching the final. Tommy Paul, on 2,925 points, is also still in contention, but needs to reach the final. Paul faces Ben Shelton in the quarter-finals, in the other half of the draw.
“I played really well,” Fritz said on court. “I did all the things that I feel like I’m doing well. It’s how I want to play, it’s my style of tennis: serving really well, returning really well and being aggressive. Conditions were fast, and I felt like the speed of the court really enabled me to play my game and get rewarded when I stepped in.”
A week after retiring against Fritz in the Basel quarter-finals, trailing 6-2, 2-0, Fils did not earn a single break point. Fritz won 41 of his 51 service points, including 11 of 12 on his second serve, and hit 14 aces to Fils’ six.
Fritz broke Fils for 4-2 in the first set, on his first break point, and served it out to love. Fils saved two break points in the opening game of the second set, but was broken in his next service game, for 2-1. The American never looked back, and closed the match to love, with a serve and a crosscourt backhand winner on his first match point.
Fritz hit 27 winners to Fils’ 15, with 16 unforced errors each. On return, the Frenchman won only one of Fritz’s 12 second-serve points. The Paris crowd tried to lift him with chants of “Allez Arthur!”, but the American was in control throughout.
“There were quite a few points where I was a bit too defensive, I think,” Fils said. “That’s also down to his speed of play today, on a hard court that is very fast. We’re not really used to playing on courts like this any more. Usually, it’s quite slow. I could have returned better on second serves. Maybe I could have used my forehand better.”
Fils’ defeat leaves Luca Van Assche, who beat Lorenzo Musetti earlier in the day, as the last Frenchman in the singles draw. Fils, the first Frenchman to qualify for the ATP Finals since Gael Monfils in 2016, now turns to Turin.
Fils, who has known Van Assche since their junior days, is not surprised to see him in the quarter-finals. “Surprised, no. He has always been a very, very good player. It was certain he would come back. He has always had huge qualities, and today he showed it again in a long match against Musetti,” he said. “I hope we’ll have a Frenchman in the semi-finals, in the final, and maybe even the winner.”
Fritz, who had not originally planned such a long end of season, says he still feels fresh. “I got done with Shanghai and I felt very motivated and healthy, and I feel like I was playing good tennis,” he said. “It just feels great to be able to play seven weeks in a row, a lot of matches, and still feel healthy and motivated.”
Next up is Alcaraz. “Carlos and I have had a lot of battles, and some close ones as well, so I’m really looking forward to the opportunity,” Fritz said.
Rolex Paris Masters 2026 last-16 results
Luca Van Assche d. Lorenzo Musetti 7-5, 3-6, 6-4
Rinky Hijikata (Q) d. Tomas Martin Etcheverry 2-6, 6-3, 7-5
Ben Shelton (3) d. Arthur Rinderknech 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5)
Tommy Paul (12) d. Quentin Halys 7-6 (3), 6-4
Jan-Lennard Struff (SE) vs Casper Ruud (Thursday)
Nuno Borges (LL) d. Ignacio Buse 6-0, 6-2
Taylor Fritz (11) d. Arthur Fils (6) 6-3, 6-4
Carlos Alcaraz (2) d. Matteo Berrettini, walkover
In bold: today’s results.
