Arthur Fils Saved 2 Match Points and Nobody Saw It Coming: Barcelona's Biggest Upset of the Day

No. 9 seed Arthur Fils was one point away from going home twice on Tuesday at the Barcelona Open, and twice he refused to let it happen. In an absolute gutfest against fellow Frenchman Terence Atmane in the Round of 32, Fils clawed back from the brink to steal a 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7) victory that felt more like survival than dominance. This is the kind of match you replay because it reminds you why tennis can wreck you emotionally.

The Tiebreaker That Nearly Ended Everything

Let's talk about that third set tiebreaker, because it's the only reason we're writing about Fils right now. He was up 4-1 in the breaker, cruising toward the finish line. Then it all came apart. Atmane clawed back to 5-4, and suddenly Fils was facing match point. He saved it. Then at 7-6, another match point stared him down. He saved that too, then scored the next two points to finally finish it 7-6. Your heart can't take that kind of tennis at 2 a.m., but here we are.

Fils saved 6 of 8 break points throughout the match and had to weather Atmane's 12 aces. For context, Fils is still chasing his first win since picking up two ATP 500 titles back in 2024. Tuesday showed he's not done yet.

The Top Seeds Did Their Job (Mostly)

The chalk held at Barcelona, mostly. Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz cruised past Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen 6-4, 6-3. Lorenzo Musetti of Italy beat Spanish wild card Martin Landaluce 7-5, 6-2. Alex de Minaur of Australia took out Austrian qualifier Sebastian Ofner 7-6 (7), 6-4. All business, all clean.

But Karen Khachanov, the No. 4 seed from Russia, got absolutely ambushed. Camilo Ugo Carabelli of Argentina didn't even need 75 minutes to finish the job, winning 6-3, 6-4 in just 73 minutes. Khachanov was a disaster with 29 unforced errors. Rublev, Machac, Sonego, and Nakashima also advanced.

Munich Gets Messy

Over at the BMW Open in Munich, top seed Alexander Zverev of Germany needed all three sets to get past Serbia's Miomir Kecmanovic 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (2). Zverev fired 12 aces and had winners at 46-23, but he also committed 38 unforced errors. That's the kind of sloppy excellence that works but doesn't feel great.

No. 3 seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan didn't have Zverev's luck. Slovak qualifier Alex Molcan pulled off the upset in 65 minutes, 6-4, 6-2, thanks largely to Bublik's 33 unforced errors. Italians Flavio Cobolli and Luciano Darderi both advanced, and Denis Shapovalov of Canada beat Dutch No. 8 Tallon Griekspoor 6-4, 3-6, 6-2.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.