Miami Gardens (United States) (AFP) – France’s Arthur Fils upset top-seed Alexander Zverev with an outstanding display, earning him a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over the German in the fourth round of the Miami Open on Wednesday. The 20-year-old Frenchman will face 19-year-old Czech Jakub Mensik in the quarter-finals, with both players looking for their first Masters 1000 semi-final spot.
Rallying from a set down, Fils showed great determination to fight his way back and go 4-1 up in the second set. Zverev responded to take a 3-1 lead early in the third, but again Fils refused to let the match slip from his grip. Fils, using his athleticism and powerful forehand, broke back to 3-2. When Zverev went long on a return, Fils took a 4-3 lead. Zverev held while serving to stay in the game at 5-4 down, but Fils kept his composure to serve out for one of the biggest wins of his career.
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The victory was all the more impressive given that Fils said he was suffering from back pain. “I was feeling not great in the rallies. I’ve had a little problem in my back since I was young, so sometimes it hurts me a little bit,” explained Fils. “I had to find a rhythm, [be] more aggressive and come into the court to play my game and not let him play, because when you let him play he is one of the best tennis players in the world. I’m really happy about the way I did it,” he added.
The fourth-round contest was postponed to Wednesday after rain on Tuesday forced a change to the schedule. Fils had also reached the quarter-finals at Indian Wells earlier this month, and he becomes the first Frenchman to make the last eight on both legs of the ‘Sunshine Double’ since Gael Monfils in 2016.
© 2024 AFP
