"I really hope to become World No. 1 someday": Arthur Fils dreaming big after standout clay swing

Arthur Fils dreams big amid a remarkable clay swing and said that he dreams of reaching World No. 1 in the future. The 21-year-old Frenchman has been one of the standout players of the last few months and appears as one of the few names capable of challenging the dominance of Jannik Sinner.

The Frenchman is coming through a great moment since his return after more than six months out of competition due to injury. Fils dropped in the rankings when he had positioned himself inside the top-15, but quickly managed to recover positions thanks to his great campaigns this season.

It only took a couple of weeks for the Frenchman to show that he could recover his good results. He reached the final in Doha, before a great Sunshine Double, with quarter-finals in Indian Wells and semi-finals in Miami. The beginning of the clay swing was especially successful, with the title at the Barcelona Open and semi-finals at the Madrid Open — totalling a streak of nine consecutive victories.

The Frenchman has 20 wins in his last 24 matches, and three of those defeats came at the hands of top-4 rivals. Despite missing the first month of the season, including the Australian Open, Fils positions himself No. 4 in the ATP Race — considering only the points from 2026 — and only trails Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev.

Fils arrives at the Italian Open full of confidence, already established as one of the contenders in the biggest tournaments. The title in Barcelona at the beginning of April confirmed that he could become competitive again after the injury, and the campaign up to the semi-finals of Madrid ended up confirming that Fils’ rise is still in progress.

In just a few months, and having missed several months of competition, he has already climbed from outside the top-40 to No. 17. Without too many points to defend during the rest of the year, it seems only a matter of time before the Frenchman can make his debut inside the top-10 — although his expectations are even higher.

“I still believe in it, yes. I know it will require a lot of work, many difficulties, and it will be a long road, but I really hope to become the World No. 1 someday,” said Fils in a press conference ahead of his debut at the Italian Open.

“Since I was little, I have been doing all of this to become the World No. 1,” he insisted. “It’s not easy, and it certainly won’t be. But if I work hard… why not believe? It is beautiful to believe.”

The 21-year-old will debut this Friday against Italian Andrea Pellegrino, a player coming through qualifying who prevailed in the all-Italian clash against Luca Nardi. It will be an opening test for the Frenchman, the 15th seed, against a rival who for now remains outside the top-150 and who is only making his Masters 1000 main-draw debut at 29 years old.

While Fils dreams big from Rome, he spoke in press conference about his ability to come through difficult moments. The Frenchman has emerged victorious from several agonising battles in recent times.

“I saved a match point against Terence Atmane in Barcelona, I played three very difficult sets against Yunchaokete Bu in Madrid… everything could have gone either way,” reflected the World No. 17. “In any case, I am very happy with my results over these last two weeks. I have been playing at a very high level since Barcelona and I’m enjoying it a lot. I feel very comfortable on clay.”

The Frenchman has three previous appearances in Rome, with his best result being the fourth round in 2025 — when he was eliminated by Alexander Zverev. Then comes French Open — where he only defends third round points and will also arrive as one of the names capable of producing a surprise.