ATP Tour

Fritz wins high-stakes Lyon SF, boosts Turin hopes

Taylor Fritz kept his composure in a high-quality semi-final against close friend Tommy Paul on Saturday at the Grand Prix Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes in Lyon.

The stakes were high with both Americans in the hunt for a place at the Nitto ATP Finals, but Fritz served his way out of trouble in style before earning a 6-3, 7-5 victory at the ATP 250 event. With his one-hour, 40-minute win, Fritz leapfrogged Paul to 12th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin and is now just 464 points behind ninth-placed Rafael Jodar, who effectively occupies the final qualification spot.

“The other side of it is that he knows me better, as well,” said Fritz, who now leads Paul 4-3 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series. “We know each other’s games so well. We practise all the time. Since we’ve gone pro, we’ve always gone back and forth. No one’s ever won two matches in a row. He won the last time, so it was my turn.”

Fritz’s typically booming serve proved decisive: He fired 15 aces and saved all nine break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Into his fifth tour-level final of the season, Fritz will face top seed Flavio Cobolli or Lorenzo Musetti in Sunday’s championship match.

“I thought it was a super high level,” Fritz said of his semi-final clash with Paul. “I played so many points as good as I could play and he still beat me. And I think the other way around, too. There weren’t many free points on either side. We made each other work for it a lot.”

Despite the defeat, Paul remains firmly in the hunt for a debut appearance at the Nitto ATP Finals. The 29-year-old, who is tied with Jannik Sinner and Frances Tiafoe for the third-most wins on the ATP Tour in 2026, will have further opportunities to strengthen his position at the upcoming tournaments in Vienna and Paris.