
Arthur Fils is preparing to make his comeback after spending two months sidelined with a back issue, missing Wimbledon. The world No. 21 battled through injury to beat Jaume Munar at the French Open back in May, advancing to the third round. Munar later accused the Frenchman of faking his injury.
But the injury was real, and Fils was forced to pull out of his home Grand Slam tournament before his next match. He has not played since, but he will now return at the Canadian Open, where he takes on former champion Pablo Carreno Busta.
In his last outing on a match court, Fils defied the odds to beat Jaume Munar in a thrilling four-hour and 25-minute second-round clash at Roland Garros. The 21-year-old received an off-court medical time-out during the match and got bagelled.
But he stormed back to win 7-6 7-6 2-6 0-6 6-4 and ripped his shirt off in celebration. Munar later claimed that Fils had simply been cramping and added: "If you have a real injury, you don't play the fifth set like he did."
However, the former world No. 14 called a press conference ahead of his third-round match, where he announced that he was suffering from a stress fracture in his back and pulled out of the tournament.
Fils is finally ready to return to competition, and he'll be back in action on Court 1 in Toronto on Wednesday.
Ahead of his return, the three-time title winner told the ATP: "It's pretty nice. It's been a long time [that] I didn't see [my] friends on the Tour, so now I am happy to be back.
"Of course, it changed a lot since two months. I was in shape, I was playing pretty good. Now I'm coming back, still in shape, but not playing good. But it's pretty nice to be back and I'm enjoying [it]."
Fils has been staying busy away from the court and spending time with his friends and family, but the 21-year-old is happy to see some of his friends and colleagues after two months away.
"When I step back into the Tour it's always nice to see some familiar faces like Gael [Monfils] or Ben [Shelton], or Foki [Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, whose wedding he attended]. It's nice to be back and to see these guys," he added.
"When I stepped on the court, I was excited. After five minutes, I was already mad. But it's nice to be back to playing. It's been 10 days now that I've been playing. I feel that the level is going better and better day after day. So, I'm pretty happy."
Fils, who was ranked at a career-high of No. 14 when he pulled out of the French Open, will be hoping he can find his feet when he takes on Carreno Busta, whom he beat in Barcelona earlier this year.
To be the first to receive the latest tennis news, join our WhatsApp community or newsletter
You may also like
Chelsea 2025/26 season print special - Pre-order your exclusive summer guide
Arsenal 2025/26 season print special - pre-order now from our online store
Tottenham 2025/26 season print special - Pre-order your exclusive summer guide
Transgender darts star Noa-Lynn van Leuven heartbroken over ban from tournaments and hits back
Stories. Legends. Fans United - Blood Red Issue One on Sale Now!