Arthur Fils saved four match points and knocked local favorite Tommy Paul out of the Miami Open quarterfinals with a dramatic 6-7 (3), 7-6 (4), 7-6 (6) victory on Wednesday in Miami Gardens, Fla.
The 28th-seeded Frenchman will face No. 21 seed Jiri Lehecka in his first career ATP Masters 1000 semifinal after knocking out No. 22 Paul, a native of nearby Boca Raton.
“It was a dog fight and I never back down from a fight,” Fils said in his on-court interview. “Even if I lose, it’s okay, I just fought the best that I could.”
Neither competitor managed a single break in the two-hour, 47-minute marathon. But it was the 21-year-old Fils who was under far more pressure when serving. He had to save six break points while managing just one break point against Paul as both won 78% or more of their service points.
After dropping the opening tiebreaker, Fils rallied from an early deficit in the second-set tiebreaker, winning seven of the final eight points to force a third set.
Fils’ only break point all match was also a match point, while up 6-5 in the third set. When he couldn’t convert it and then found himself down 6-2 in the third-set tiebreaker, he appeared destined to fall to 0-5 in 1000-level quarterfinals.
But Fils changed the narrative — and possibly his career trajectory — by winning the next six points, pulling out a stunning win.
“That’s the best result I’ve had in my life so far,” said Fils. “I will try to do my best in the semis, but now I’m pretty happy.”
Lehecka had eight aces while producing a 7-6 (1), 7-5 victory over Spanish qualifier Martin Landaluce to advance to his date with Fils.
Lehecka won 85.1% of his first-serve points and had 19 winners against 23 unforced errors in the quarterfinal match.
Lehecka, 24, will face either No. 22 Tommy Paul or No. 28 Arthur Fils of France in Friday’s semifinals. Those two men meet Wednesday night.
“Today was super tough,” Lehecka said. “It is never easy to play against an opponent who has nothing to lose. He played incredibly. He played some unbelievable shots in crucial moments. Every time I had a break point he went for it and deserved those points. It was tough for me to handle. We both started to play very well and I was looking for the chance on the return, which finally came in the last game of the match.”
This is just the second time the Czech has reached the semis of a 1000-level event. The other was Madrid in 2024.
Part of Lehecka’s run at this event was an upset of sixth-seeded Taylor Fritz in the fourth round.
“Every match at Masters 1000 level is great and I am very proud of myself being able to fight through these past couple of days,” Lehecka said. “These are good, tough wins and I will do whatever I can do to prepare for the next round.”
Landaluce, 20, saved 9 of 10 break points in a strong effort and nearly forced a third set. He had 20 winners and 26 unforced errors before succumbing in two hours, two minutes.
The other two quarterfinals are Thursday. No. 2 seed Jannik Sinner of Italy faces No. 19 Frances Tiafoe, and No. 3 Alexander Zverev of Germany opposes No. 18 Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina.
–Field Level Media
