Stefanos Tsitsipas improved to 14-7 for the season with a hard-fought straight-sets win over Seb Korda (claiming back-to-back American scalps after defanging big-serving Opelka in his opener).
2025 ATP Tour
ATP 500
Barcelona Open
Real Club de Tenis Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain (Outdoor Clay)
Selected Quarterfinals- 18th April
Stefanos Tsitsipas (3) 1.07 vs Arthur Fils (7) 0.74
Tsitsipas hasn’t looked at his best this season, with that Dubai title run adding a bit of gloss to his stats (he has only gone beyond the quarterfinals once this year). Players really seem to be targeting his backhand wing. Having said that, the former French Open runner-up will always be a factor on clay. And the slower, the better. Tsitsipas thrives on slow surfaces that afford him the time to make minor adjustments, allowing him to set up his patented forehand. The three-time Monte-Carlo champ just loves arduous, drawn-out rallies. He has enjoyed these notoriously sticky Barcelona surfaces in the past, finishing runner-up on four occasions (and in each of the last two seasons). He was taken down by Musetti in Monte-Carlo, falling to his lowest ranking since 2018 in the process (18). He is in desperate need of another title but will face stiff opposition in the form of up-and-coming Arthur Fils.
20-year-old Frenchman Arthur Fils is gearing up towards something special. The three-time ATP champion may not have won this year, but he has showcased some impressive consistency, reaching three consecutive Masters 1000 quarterfinals (Indian Wells, Miami and Monte-Carlo). He showed off commendable clay-court nous in Monte-Carlo, fending off 7th seed Andrey Rublev before pushing eventual champ Carlos Alcaraz to three sets. He is yet to drop a set this week, easing past Pedro Martinez 6-3, 6-2 in his round of 16 clash. He was particularly impressive on serve, winning 80% of his first-serve points (quite impressive on these dust bowls). Fils feels like a contemporary version of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, relying on a megawatt serve and huge forehand to keep points short. He won his maiden ATP 500 in Hamburg last year (highlighting his burgeoning clay-court talents).
The Verdict: Fils to win in three at 3.1- Fils leads the head-to-head 2-0, failing to drop a set in two hardcourt meetings. Tsitsipas will obviously be favoured on these slow clay-courts. But the Greek isn’t quite the same player this season and Fils is growing stronger every week. I think that the aggressive Frenchman could expose Tsitsipas’ backhand frailties with that canon of a forehand.
