ATP Tour

Fils converts sixth MP to down Michelsen in Brussels, boost Turin hopes

Arthur Fils survived a stern test from Alex Michelsen, battling through a tense second-set tie-break to prevail 6-4, 7-6(12) and reach the semi-finals of the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open Friday, continuing his pursuit of Nitto ATP Finals qualification.

The top seed dropped his serve while serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set, then needed six match points in the tie-break to advance. Fils finished having converted three of four break points he earned, according to Infosys ATP Stats, and fired 31 winners compared to 15 from Michelsen.

"At 6-4, 5-3 I saw myself in the locker room taking a shower," Fils joked following his one-hour, 50-minute win. "Then he battled very hard. He was playing way better tennis than I was. So I had to battle and I am happy to have finished in two sets."

With the victory, the top seed jumped one spot to seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, 266 points clear of ninth-placed Rafael Jodar, who is in the final qualification spot.

Bidding to make his debut at the season-ending championships, the Frenchman took a 1-0 lead in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Michelsen. The No. 10 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Fils is into his sixth tour-level semi-final of the season.

Competing as the top seed for the first time on the ATP Tour, Fils will face home hope Zizou Bergs or Jan-Lennard Struff for a place in the Brussels final.

In other action, Tallon Griekspoor dug deep to upset second seed Jiri Lehecka 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 to become the first Dutch semi-finalist in tournament history. With his two-hour, 16-minute triumph, the 30-year-old advanced to his 12th ATP Tour semi-final and second this season following his run to the Dubai final.

The next test for the Dutchman in Brussels will be a semi-final meeting with third seed Francisco Cerundolo.

Earlier, Cerundolo eased past French qualifier Clement Chidekh 6-2, 6-4 in one hour and 16 minutes. Competing in his first tour-level quarter-final, Chidekh was unable to contain Cerundolo, who faced no break points and won 93 per cent (28/30) of his first-serve points to advance.

With the triumph, Cerundolo marched into his fourth semi-final of the season. The Argentine is chasing his third trophy of 2026, having lifted titles in Buenos Aires and at The Queen’s Club.