“The first Top 10 win in a career is always symbolic”: Mpetshi Perricard celebrates landmark victory over Taylor Fritz

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard delivered one of the upsets of the day at the Shanghai Masters, after eliminating world No. 4 Taylor Fritz, shaking up the draw and, in addition, securing his first victory against a top-10 player.

After the match, ‘GMP’ was overflowing with joy over the best win of his career. In the first round, he had already dispatched Luca Nardi (6-3, 7-6), and this time he had no trouble eliminating the American No. 1 with a 6-4, 7-5 scoreline. He tallied 12 aces, landed 70% of his first serves, and won a total of 79% of service points—in addition to hitting 29 winners against just 8 for his opponent.

It has not been an easy year for one of the players who created the most buzz in 2024—especially late in the season. He has struggled in 2024 to maintain good results and has not had any deep runs in tournaments so far.

The 22-year-old reached the third round of a Masters 1000 for only the second time in his career, and it is just the third time this season he has managed consecutive victories at the ATP level.

The tournament is now even more interesting following the exit of Fritz, which follows the elimination of his compatriot Ben Shelton (6th seed) and Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal earlier this Sunday. Only four top-10 players remain in the draw, led by Zverev and Djokovic.

Last week, Mpetshi was drawn against 4th seed Lorenzo Musetti at the China Open, and in a tight battle, he ended up losing 6-7(3), 7-6(4), 4-6. It was his sixth consecutive loss against top-10 players without a win.

However, the negative streak against the elite group came to an end this Sunday when he faced Fritz. “It's incredible. I didn't think I was going to play so well,” Mpetshi commented in the on-court interview with the ATP. “The last match, against [Lorenzo] Musetti, was difficult; I had a lot of things to improve. Today, I did better than in our first match at Wimbledon; I was stronger mentally and physically. I have been working for this for a long time, I am very happy to see the progress. This match was an opportunity to show it, and I'm going to try to continue against Holger [Rune] in the next round.”

“It's something quite enormous. The first Top 10 win in a career is always symbolic. The conditions were very difficult to handle; it was heavy and humid, and he [Fritz] struggled a bit in the important moments. I'm really happy with my level of play and with having shown some great things.”

The Frenchman had a notable 2024 that earned him the Newcomer of the Season award at the end of the year. He won his first titles at the Lyon Open and the Swiss Indoors—the latter being his first ATP 500, defeating Ben Shelton in the final. After starting the year outside the top-200, he finished at a remarkable No. 31 ranking at just 21 years old.

Mpetshi Perricard has gained a reputation especially for having one of the most powerful serves on the Tour—with a first serve that clocks in around 135 mph and a second at 123 mph. According to ATP data, Mpetshi Perricard leads in serve rating (298.2)—ahead of Fritz (296.6), Sinner (296.4), Zverev (294.0), and Djokovic (294.0). In the last 52 weeks, he has an average of 14.6 aces per match (second only to Reilly Opelka) and has won 89.7% of his service games (second after Sinner).

The Frenchman will look to continue his great tournament when he steps back on court this Tuesday to face 10th seed Holger Rune, against whom he has a 1-1 head-to-head record.