"It was just a dog fight, and I never back down from a fight" - Arthur Fils describes dramatic comeback against Tommy Paul as 'best result in my life'

Arthur Fils completed a stunning turnaround against an unfortunate Tommy Paul in the quarterfinals of the Miami Open. He came from a set down and a 6-2 deficit in the third tiebreak to win a thriller 6-7(3), 7-6(4), 7-6(6).

There was a grand total of zero breaks converted in a match where both players served very well, holding the fort when starting a point. Failing to make any inroads on each other saw three inevitable tiebreaks pop up. Paul raced ahead in the first one to edge himself in front before Fils got the score level.

Just ahead of the third tiebreak, Fils failed to take a match point on the Paul serve, leaving him to rue a missed opportunity. This could have been even more painful when Paul sprinted out into a 6-2 lead, creating four match points. Fils' response was immense. He came in clutch, winning six points on the spin to not only save those match points but to create another for himself. He coolly got the job done, sparking jubilant scenes.

“I just had to believe in myself. That was the most important," he stated in his press conference. “I think he played very, very good tennis tonight, especially in the tiebreak until 6-2."

He was almost inclined to his fate when going down by such a deficit, but sought the positives from what looked like a perilous situation. “I just said, okay, look, point by point, if I’m lucky, I get through. If not, it’s okay, it’s not a big deal. He was playing better than me. So, I just had to fight until the end and see."

The work is not yet done. He will face off against Jiri Lehecka for the chance to compete in his first Masters 1000 final. “It feels very good to be in the semis for the first time in my life. I’m going to try my best. I have a tough match against Jiri. Let’s see how I get through it. But it feels good.”

It had looked like the end of the road for Fils with Paul on the cusp of confirming a fifth Masters 1000 semi-final participation. Fils, who had reached three consecutive Masters 1000 quarterfinals at the start of 2025, finally took that extra step, cruelly preventing Paul from making more progress.

When speaking to Tennis TV after the match, the Frenchman shared how much passion and emotion went into this contest. “A lot, a lot. I step on the court, I was feeling a bit tired. [Paul] was playing very good, he was playing better than me in the first set,” he commented.

“I just tried to find some energy, I tried to cheer a little bit for me because of the crowd was a bit for him. And then it was just a dog fight, and I never back down from a fight, so even if I lose, it’s okay, I fought the best that I could.”

One of the things exposed was a hefty mentality. Despite coming up against a good friend, there was a job to be done. “Look, today I was just fighting, and even if [Paul] is my friend out of the court, when we are stepping on the court, it’s either him or me, and well, I prefer when it’s me," he joked. "So yeah, I was just trying my best tonight, and I did good."

He was not shy in placing this as one of his greatest achievements on a tennis court. “That’s the best result I had in my life so far, so I will try to do my best in the semi, but now I’m pretty happy."

Fils came into the tournament looking to claim back as many of the points from his quarterfinal appearance last year as possible. After making a comeback to the sport at the Open Occitanie following a long period on the sidelines due to a back injury, he has taken very little time to get back to his best.

He reached the Qatar Open final before losing out to the world number one Carlos Alcaraz ahead of making it back-to-back last-eight appearances at Indian Wells. In a period with a lot of points on the line, the 21-year-old has not only gotten the points earned from last year's Sunshine swing back on his overall tally but added more. He is up 200 points, pushing him back into the top 30 in the live rankings.

His career high of world number 14 achieved back in April could soon be boosted up if he can continue this fine form with barely any points to defend following Roland Garros. If he reaches the final, he will climb from 28th to 22nd.