Son also surrenders to the demands of the calendar: "I'm tired, very tired"

Many tennis players have been pointing out in recent weeks the brutal physical and mental demands of the current clay court season. Advancing far in their early tournaments can be a double-edged sword: the increasing physical and power component in their playing style and the transition to the two-week Masters 1000 events seem to be the main factors leading to more frequent injuries and fatigue. Carlos Alcaraz was the latest victim... and Arthur Fils, after losing in his debut at the Mutua Madrid Open 2025, became the latest star to speak out.

Because the Frenchman, despite being up 5-1 in the first set against Francisco Comeseña, couldn't keep up the pace and suffered a significant physical and tennis slump, eventually yielding. We're talking about the complete paradigm of going far in the big tournaments: until this week, he was the only player on tour to reach the quarterfinals of the first three Masters 1000 events of the year... and, of course, there are days when that accumulated fatigue becomes evident and plays a trick on you.

"I am tired. I am very tired. The calendar is tough: you need to train many days in a row. I am tired. I need to take two or three days off and then I will return to training," reflected the Frenchman in words collected by L'Equipe. He didn't hesitate to analyze a defeat that perhaps originated from his early training days at the altitude of Madrid: "I've had issues, even in practice, with ball control. As the match progressed, the more mistakes I made, the more... all credit goes to my opponent. He played a great match, fought to the maximum, made me play when needed. I missed a lot, a whole lot. It's true that if I had finished that first set quickly, the match would have been different, but these things happen".

AN AREA FOR IMPROVING HIS GAME

Fils not only highlights the negative aspects stemming from external circumstances like the packed schedule: he also acknowledges that the beginnings of tournaments, at times, are still a small weak point for him. "I have to work on that. It's true that today I started the match well, without many issues, but sometimes matches slip away from your hands. These are not conditions I particularly enjoy playing in; I will have to find a way to be comfortable in the future," stated Arthur, who won't be deterred by this minor setback and affirms his belief in the process: "I've had good weeks, coming off four great tournaments. It's a loss, hurts like any other, but it doesn't matter, now it's time to return to training". His next stop will be the Masters 1000 in Rome.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Fils también se rinde a la exigencia del calendario: "Estoy cansado, muy cansado"