Arthur Fils reveals what was going through his mind at 6-2 down against Tommy Paul

Arthur Fils pulled off an impressive comeback to defeat Tommy Paul at the Miami Open.

Speaking ahead of his match against Paul, Fils said he felt he was playing better than he had before his back injury. That confidence has since shown itself in results, as he’s now reached his first Masters 1000 semifinal.

Still, it nearly didn’t happen. Fils found himself down 6-2 in the final set tiebreak and had to dig deep to turn it around.

After coming from behind, Fils explained what was going through his mind while facing four match points.

Arthur Fils kept it simple during the tie-break comeback

Fils’ match against Paul was a completely different story. The young Frenchman came back from a set down to win 6(3)-7, 7-6(4), 7-6(6), winning the last six points of the match and saving four match points along the way.

He later explained what he was thinking when he found himself trailing 6-2 in the final set tie-break.

“I don’t really know! I just had to believe in myself; that was the most important thing,” Fils told L’Equipe. “I think he played some really, really good tennis, especially in the tiebreak up to 6-2. I think he hit four or five winners; he was playing incredibly well.

“I just thought, ‘Okay, point by point. If I get lucky, I’ll pull it off; if not, no big deal’. He was playing better than me, so I just had to fight to the end and see what happened.”

Arthur Fils shares fitness update ahead of Miami Open semi-final

The buzz around Arthur Fils continues to grow after his Miami Open run, but there’s still a note of caution following a seven-month layoff last year due to a back injury.

The 21-year-old only returned in February and spent nearly three hours on court against Paul. Asked how he felt afterwards about playing almost three hours against Paul.

He admitted that if he had lost the match, there was no chance he’d be walking the next day.

“It was tough physically, I need to recover now,” said Fils. “My legs are a bit sore, a bit stiff, but you know, when you win, you don’t feel it as much. If I had lost, I wouldn’t even be able to walk tomorrow, that’s for sure!”

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