Is Arnaldi prepared to win Roland Garros?: "I still have energy left"

Carlos Navarro | 3 Jun 2026 | 23.25

Matteo Arnaldi could be the big revelation of Roland Garros. Is he capable of winning the title? Source: Getty

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Matteo Arnaldi lives in Roland Garros 2026, experiencing the greatest opportunity of his sports career. Who would have thought that the Italian, who fell in his debut in eight of the first ten tournaments of the season, would, after months of suffering, physical recovery, doubts about his level, and several hints of rest, be surprised by destiny with a celebration where he has sneaked in as a last-minute guest. In Paris, the perfect unknown is a guy who has been advancing round after round quietly... until the spotlight's power finally illuminates him.

He did not reach the penultimate round as he would have liked, with the bittersweet taste of his good friend Matteo Berrettini retiring, but tomorrow the perspective will be different. Every cloud has a silver lining: the two hours he spent on Chatrier, less than expected, give him a little respite after being on the court for over 17 hours to reach the quarterfinals. To date, and since the Open Era (1990), no one has spent more time on the court to reach the semifinals in a Grand Slam than Arnaldi, breaking the record previously held by Albert Costa (Arnaldi has accumulated 19 hours and 42 minutes on court; the Spaniard had completed 18 hours and 31 minutes to reach the semifinals of Roland Garros 2003).

Is Arnaldi capable of enduring physically to become the champion of Roland Garros 2026? Matteo reveals his optimism

Thus, one of the main points of interest of the Italian's press conference was, undoubtedly, hearing his assessment of his physical condition. Matteo admitted that yesterday he didn't even train, a sign that the marathons against names like Tiafoe or Collignon left a tough mark on him... but the mileage is not enough to deter him from his dream. "Well, I feel quite good. It's clear that today the physical aspect was a big question mark, as I had played two very long matches, but yesterday I did no tennis. I came here, spent time with the physios and in the gym... and nothing else. Today I felt quite good on court, to be honest. I can't complain. I have played a lot, but at the same time, I'm happy to spend that time on court, as I missed playing so much. Of course, I still have fuel and energy for the next matches."

For a guy who suffered so many defeats at the start of the season, his journey through Roland Garros can only be seen through the prism of optimism, riding a wave of unstoppable confidence that disregards physical concerns. Arnaldi's youth contrasts with the recurring physical problems of his compatriot, a Matteo Berrettini who he had words of admiration for. "It wasn't the match we expected or wanted to see. I'm very happy with my performance and how the tournament is progressing; it's crazy to think I'm in the semifinals, but I feel bad for Matteo. We trained a lot together, in Monte Carlo. It's tough to see him like this, but he has had a great tournament. He's back playing at a fantastic level, and now he has the grass court season ahead, where he shows his best tennis. I'm convinced he will come back stronger," emotionally stated the one from San Remo, who earlier left a beautiful scene on the court, consoling his fellow player as he left Chatrier.

Arnaldi feels excited and answers the burning question: How does someone outside the top-100 make it to the Roland Garros semifinals?

The path to get here has not been easy for the Italian, who endured a significant injury to his right foot at the end of last year and saw his ranking plummet in recent months. He gained momentum at the Challenger de Cagliari, where he claimed the title after a tough start to the year, generating the positive momentum he needed to arrive in Paris and let his tennis do the talking. He discussed this further in the rest of his press conference with the Italian media, also revealing when he first faced Flavio Cobolli, his semifinal opponent.

- On the physical work he is doing to stay in top shape: he admits he is not at 100%

"It wasn't an easy period because I couldn't do what I wanted due to the problem I had, but I've tried to do everything they told me, we are working on it. I'm not at 100%, but I'm much better, they allow me to play, so I can't complain. Tomorrow will be another day where I will try to recover from the previous match. But as I said before, I'm fine. I thought I would be much worse today, but I felt very good. I'm very happy with the work we have done and how everything is going."

- Did he ever feel that this could be a special tournament?

"No, honestly no. As I said on the first day, I came here with the idea of playing many matches and feeling good again on court. I started feeling good again after the Cagliari and Rome tournaments: I gained some confidence in myself and my tennis level because before I had many questions and doubts every time I stepped on court. The truth is that the further I progressed in the tournament, the better I felt. There is some fatigue, of course, but I am regaining confidence, and what I lacked before was playing."

I feel better and better and believe that I can improve for future tournaments. I'm very happy; it's unexpected when I think about where I was a month ago, nearly 150th in the rankings and losing points from Madrid. So I'm very happy, although this didn't happen by chance. There is a lot of work behind it, both from myself mentally, trying to stay calm when I couldn't play or when I started playing again, but couldn't push myself as I wanted. And also from my whole team and the people who have been close to me this year, in these eight months."

- Concerning whether he could imagine how long it would take to get back to his former level... or if he would succeed

"I just want to correct one thing. In my mind, I have always tried not to think that I wouldn't return to the level where I was. I always thought that this was a step, a part of my career where I had to face difficult moments, but I was sure I would achieve it. I didn't know how, when, and I didn't think I would do it so quickly, but it was one step further, so that never crossed my mind.

The only thing that probably crossed my mind was that it wasn't easy to watch other people playing while I missed tournaments, or go to tournaments but not being quite well yet knowing I was going to step on court without being at 100%. That surely was tough, but we worked well, and here I found an incredible result for me."

- Preview of his semifinal against an old acquaintance: Flavio Cobolli

"We have a good rivalry on the court. Ever since we were kids, we've been in many battles; on the court, there's a good rivalry, but off the court, we are friends. We often train together or hang out together. It might not seem like we are very friendly when we play, but off the court, we spend a lot of time together, and as I said in English, we've grown up together. I don't remember if I won or lost, but the first match where we faced each other was at the Italian championship, in the Under 13, no, Under 14, because he was one year younger. I think I won (smiles)."

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, ¿Está Arnaldi preparado para ganar Roland Garros?: "Todavía me queda energía"

Matteo Arnaldi