By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Sunday May 11, 2025
Arthur Fils took a backhand to the body in the second set of his battle with Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Consider it a wake-up call.
The Frenchman used the incident as motivation and ended up sweeping past the Greek, 2-6 6-4 6-2, to reach the round of 16 at Rome. When the pair shook hands at the net, it was time for a parting shot from Fils. The pair argued vehemently before working out their issues and declaring “all good.”
See the full video of their tete-a-tete and de-escalation here:
“He went for my body. It’s part of the game. Nothing wrong with it” 🗣️
Here’s what happened between Arthur Fils and Stefanos Tsitsipas as they battled in Rome…#IBI25 pic.twitter.com/OOvsAwD7mW
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 11, 2025
“All good,” said Fils, who will face Alexander Zverev in the round of 16. “We’re just talking about the match. No worries.
“He’s a great, great, great player, especially on clay. During the first set, he killed me. I had to find a way. I managed to break at 4-4 with a great game, a bit lucky as well. But I’m very happy with how I finished the match. It was a tough battle, and I finished strong.”
Fils becomes second Frenchman in series history to collect 20 ATP Masters 1000 match wins before turning 21 years of age after Richard Gasquet and improved to 4-0 vs Tsitsipas and 19-9 on the season.
Two Frenchman – also Corentin Moutet – are into the round of 16 at Rome for the first time in nine years.
