Valentin Vacherot Beats Arthur Fils to Reach Tokyo Semi-Finals

Valentin Vacherot Overcomes Arthur Fils to Reach Tokyo Semi-Finals

Valentin Vacherot defeated former champion Arthur Fils 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 on Sunday at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships to reach the semi-finals.

Vacherot Rallies to Defeat Fils

Vacherot rallied from a break down in both the first and third sets during the two-hour, 20-minute ATP 500 encounter. The 27-year-old Monegasque reeled off four consecutive games in each of those sets to secure the victory. With Fils serving to stay in the match at 4-5 in the final set, Vacherot struck two consecutive return winners and outlasted the Frenchman in extended rallies to clinch the decisive break.

Then, in the third, I was a bit more positive that I could break him back because I was at 30/30 in a lot of his service games. Maybe he should have won one of the first or third sets, but I won both of them. That’s tennis. That’s the beauty.

Vacherot Reaches Semi-Final to Face Lehecka

The win lifts Vacherot four places to No. 14 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings as he targets a Top-10 debut, though he is set to drop 1,000 points ahead of his title defense next week in Shanghai. Vacherot advanced to his third ATP Tour semi-final, where he is scheduled to face Jiri Lehecka. Lehecka booked his spot in the semi-finals by defeating Adolfo Daniel Vallejo 6-1, 6-1 in 58 minutes.

Nitto ATP Finals Implications for Fils

For Fils, the defeat complicates his pursuit of a debut appearance at the Nitto ATP Finals. The 22-year-old Frenchman currently holds seventh place in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. However, eighth-placed Daniil Medvedev and ninth-placed Alex de Minaur remain active in Beijing, leaving Fils vulnerable as the race for Turin reaches its final stretch.