“Like he had never left”: Arthur Fils makes a statement in Montpellier return
Six months is an eternity in professional tennis. Since a stress fracture in his back forced him out of the circuit last August, Arthur Fils had become a spectator to the sport he was destined to lead. But on Tuesday night at the Open Sud de France, the former world No. 14 dismantled any notion … Continued
Arthur Fils, Montpellier 2026 | © JB Autissier / PsNewz
Six months is an eternity in professional tennis. Since a stress fracture in his back forced him out of the circuit last August, Arthur Fils had become a spectator to the sport he was destined to lead. But on Tuesday night at the Open Sud de France, the former world No. 14 dismantled any notion of “rust” with a a 7-6(7), 6-7(4), 6-2 victory over Valentin Royer.
The Frenchman looked physically transformed and mentally unshakeable. For a player who hadn’t competed since the 2025 summer swing, the intensity was startling.
Fils entered the press room in Montpellier looking leaner – the result of losing six kilos during his rehabilitation. While the tennis world was focused on the Australian Open, Fils was grinding in the shadows. He was quick to credit his support system for the seamless transition back to the high-pressure environment of the ATP Tour.
Fils : “People don’t realize”
“It’s definitely a long work, and not just for me, for the whole team. Everyone worked. From the physio to the physical coach, then from physical to tennis… and also my father, Philippe, who did a very, very big job behind all that. In the end, there was a lot, a lot of work. People don’t necessarily know, they don’t realize it; they only see what’s on the court when we win or lose.”
The third set was the clincher. Serving with precision and moving with a fluidity that betrayed his long absence, Fils looked every bit the top-tier contender. He admitted he was even a bit surprised by his own resilience.
“Especially seeing the end of the second where I started to struggle a bit. And then I told myself, anyway, it’s already good; I’m here, I’m in the third against a very good player. In my comeback match – I haven’t played for eight months – so I thought, frankly, it’s good, it means I’m playing well. And then I loosened up a bit. I know how to play tennis. I know I can hold that level for four, five, six, seven… so yeah, I knew I’d hold up. I didn’t know how long he was going to hold up.”
Royer impressed
For Valentin Royer, the defeat carried a personal sting. Though born in Neuilly, Royer has been a “Montpelliérain d’adoption” for three years, training at the local academy. Playing in front of his home crowd, the world No. 56 – who pushed Taylor Fritz in a physical battle earlier in Melbourne last month – nearly pulled off the upset.
Royer served for the first set at 5-3, only to feel the pressure of the moment. He was brutally honest about the mental hurdle. “My wrists tightened up. I made quite a few backhand errors, especially into the net. In the second set, I put my balls on the table and I was the boss. I was aggressive, I was moving forward. But in the third, Arthur played with my head. He was feinting on the returns, being proactive. I didn’t think he’d have that level of play after six months because he played like he never left.”
Royer’s surprise at Fils’ mental freshness was a sentiment shared by the crowd. “I thought he might drop a bit mentally or something. I was right there with him, even in the third, trying to make it a tug-of-war and maybe get the upper hand, but he didn’t drop. It serves as a lesson for me because if I’ve had injuries before, when I come back to matches, I need a few to get back into the match rhythm. Bravo to him. It’s a great performance.”
The match served as a crossroads for both men. For Royer, it was a missed opportunity to notch a signature win in his adopted home, yet a confirmation that his 2025 surge was no fluke. “I believe in the work,” Royer noted. “If I keep this intensity and this grinta, beautiful things will happen in 2026.”
For Fils, however, the night was a rebirth. By the time he closed out the match with a double break in the third, the message to the ATP Tour was undeniable: the recovery is over. As he put it simply before leaving the room: “I’m not going to stop at one victory. I’ve never stopped at one victory, so that’s not going to change.” His eventual quarterfinal against Felix Auger-Aliassime, seen No.1, is already expected.
