Arthur Fils Wins Maiden Barcelona Open Title

 

Arthur Fils is the champion of the Barcelona Open for the first time, extending his career ATP title tally to four, after battling through an exhausting final against Andrey Rublev. 

The Frenchman outlasted his opponent in straight sets, 6-2-7-6(2), despite having a slow start in the opening set. However, he rose to the challenge, winning six straight games before claiming the championship points in the tiebreak of the second set. 

Meanwhile, Andrey enjoyed an impressive start, breaking the first game before Fils broke back in the fourth game. The Russian rallied in the second set, saving a championship point at 5-4 to force a tie-break. He started off well in the tie-break, winning the first two points before Fils rallied, winning seven straight points to win the title. 

"The whole match was a bit tough," Fils said, admittedly. "I played well for a set and a half, but when I had to close, I started to think a little. But I'm very happy with the way I played the tie-break

En route to the final, Fils proved to be an outstanding player. He only dropped two sets throughout the event, with a 10-2 set-winning streak. He served 31 winners, winning 68 points on his first serves. 

The 28-year-old was making his first appearance in the Barcelona Open. It was his second final appearance of the season, following his Qatar Open final loss to Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets.