Arthur Fils was not on court when he qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals. Quentin Halys was. The Frenchman saved four match points against Frances Tiafoe on Wednesday at the Rolex Paris Masters and won 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(9) in one hour and 57 minutes, and that result put his compatriot through to Turin with a match still to play.
Fils then played it. The sixth seed beat Czech qualifier Tomas Machac 6-3, 7-6(4) in the night session to reach the third round, where he meets Taylor Fritz on Thursday, the one match left in Paris that can still change who joins him in Turin.
The qualifier. Arthur Fils becomes the first Frenchman at the season finale since Gael Monfils in 2016. He did not start his season until February, when he was ranked No. 42. Since then he has won his first ATP Masters 1000 title in Cincinnati, beating Tiafoe in the final, and titles in Barcelona, where he saved two match points against Terence Atmane in the first round, and Doha. He reached at least the semifinals at three Masters 1000 events, Miami, Madrid and Cincinnati, the first Frenchman to do that in a season since Guy Forget in 1991. He rose to a career-high No. 7 on Monday.
He joins Alexander Zverev, Carlos Alcaraz, Ben Shelton, Daniil Medvedev and Flavio Cobolli, who qualified from the sidelines on Tuesday when Casper Ruud beat Rafael Jodar. Two singles places remain. The tournament runs from 15 to 22 November at the Inalpi Arena; the ATP Finals guide covers the format and the draw.
Djokovic is out. Novak Djokovic, the seven-time champion in Paris, needed to reach the semifinals to stay alive. Qualifier Rinky Hijikata, ranked No. 83, beat him 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 in two hours and 13 minutes. Hijikata saved all three break points he faced in the final set and finished it by stepping in on a Djokovic second serve and hitting his 29th forehand winner. It was his first win over Djokovic in three meetings.
“I should’ve won this match. I played well in the first set and then completely lost control,” Djokovic said. “He was just playing out of his mind, honestly. He was not missing, keeping the ball low.”
“That’s been the key this week for me: To try and impose my game as much as I can and back myself in the big moments,” Hijikata said.
De Minaur is out too. Alex de Minaur lost 7-6(2), 6-3 to Tomas Martin Etcheverry. He finished Paris 10th in the Race on 3,170 points, behind two players who can no longer add points either, so he cannot climb back into the top nine.
The Race after Wednesday. With Jannik Sinner out for the rest of the season, ninth place in the Race to Turin is the last way in. The cutoff is the end of Paris, so these totals are final for everyone who has lost:
- 7. Arthur Fils, 3,625 (qualified; still in Paris)
- 8. Frances Tiafoe, 3,390 (out of Paris)
- 9. Rafael Jodar, 3,234 (out of Paris)
- 10. Alex de Minaur, 3,170 (out of Paris; eliminated from the Race)
- 11. Taylor Fritz, 2,950 (in the third round)
- 12. Novak Djokovic, 2,940 (out of Paris; eliminated from the Race)
- 13. Tommy Paul, 2,825 (in the third round)
What Thursday decides. If Paul or Fritz loses on Thursday, Frances Tiafoe qualifies for his first ATP Finals. If both lose, Rafael Jodar qualifies as well and the field is complete. Paul plays Halys first on Court Central at 11:00 local time. Fritz plays Fils not before 8:30 p.m.
The points explain why the two Americans need deep runs. On the Masters 1000 scale, Fritz reaches 3,250 with a semifinal and 3,500 with a final, so he needs the semifinals to pass Jodar and the final to pass Tiafoe. Paul reaches 3,375 with a final and 3,725 with the title, so he needs the final to pass Jodar and the title to pass Tiafoe. Tiafoe misses Turin only if both men finish above him, which would take a Fritz final and a Paul title.
Who waits. The first player below the cutoff becomes the alternate and must stay available in Turin until the last round-robin match begins. How that place works is set out in the ATP Finals alternates explainer.
