Struff, 36, fights back twice in the decider to stun Fils and reach Brussels final

Jan-Lennard Struff came back from a break down twice in the deciding set, including when Arthur Fils served for the match, to beat the top seed 6-4, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (5) on Saturday evening and reach the final of the Brussels ATP 250. At 36, the German is the second-oldest finalist in the event’s history and will play Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands for the title.

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Struff took control early, breaking Fils in the third game for 2-1. Serving at 4-5, Fils saved three set points in a long game, but Struff served out the set at the next opportunity.

The second set went with serve. Fils saved a break point in a marathon game for 2-1, and Struff saved two at 2-2. In the tiebreak, Fils led 4-1 and was pegged back to 4-4. He needed four set points to take it 9-7, Struff being two points away from the win.

The decider swung back and forth. Fils broke in the opening game and led 2-0, but Struff broke straight back for 2-2. Fils broke again for 5-4 and served for the match, but Struff broke back at the third attempt. In the tiebreak, a mini-break at 5-5 gave the German a match point, and he converted it on his serve.

“Very happy. It was a very tough match,” Struff said on court. “I felt I played a very, very good first set. He got the second very close. I’m just happy to get a win.”

A first final on hard courts

Struff, ranked No. 58, had lost all seven of his previous semifinals on hard courts. He reaches the fifth ATP Tour final of his career and his first since winning his only title in Munich in 2024.

The win leveled his head-to-head with Fils at 1-1, after the Frenchman won 6-3, 6-4 at the Paris Masters 1000 in 2024. It was Struff’s third win over a top-10 player this season, after Alexander Bublik in the first round of Roland-Garros and Daniil Medvedev in the third round at Wimbledon, where he became the oldest man in the Open Era to reach a first Grand Slam quarterfinal.

“It’s just never quitting and trying one more time, just fighting, hanging in there,” he said about how good he plays at 36.

Struff had beaten American Marcos Giron 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3), Belgian lucky loser Gauthier Onclin 6-4, 6-2 and No. 6 seed Zizou Bergs of Belgium 6-3, 7-6 (6).

Fils, ranked No. 10 and the top seed at an ATP Tour event for the first time, had reached the semifinals after a walkover from Jaume Munar and a 6-4, 7-6 (12) win over No. 5 seed Alex Michelsen of the United States. He was chasing his fourth final of the season.

Fils still leaves Brussels with a milestone. The 100 points from his semifinal will lift him to a career-high No. 8 in the rankings on Monday. He also moves to seventh in the Race to Turin, overtaking Frances Tiafoe.

Struff will face Griekspoor in the final of the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open on Sunday. Griekspoor has won all three of their meetings, most recently 7-6 (5), 7-6 (7) in Doha last year. “Of course I need to recover,” Struff said. “For the final, I will try to be in the best shape I can.”