Arthur Gea secures quarterfinal spot after Tomas Machac retirement in Montpellier

French wildcard Arthur Gea advanced to the quarterfinals of the Open Occitanie this Wednesday evening following the retirement of world No. 28 Tomas Machac. The 21-year-old Frenchman, currently ranked No. 168 in the ATP rankings, was leading 6-3, 4-5 on the Court Patrice Dominguez when the third-seeded Czech was forced to stop the contest.

This victory marks a remarkably fortunate run for Gea in Montpellier, as he has now benefited from two consecutive abandonments in his favor. In the opening round, he advanced past world No. 51 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard after the Frenchman suffered a freak eye injury while Gea led 6-3.

This latest withdrawal by Machac is a significant statistic for the Czech, marking his 10th retirement on the ATP Tour, a recurring physical struggle that has hampered the Adelaide champion’s recent momentum.

Gea, who recently reached the second round of the Australian Open as a qualifier, showed great composure before the match was cut short. Reflecting on his earlier round, Gea said: “It’s never easy to see a friend injured like this. Obviously, I didn’t want to do it like this, but it’s the game.” He now moves on to an all-French quarterfinal clash against veteran Adrian Mannarino, who defeated Ugo Humbert.