ROLAND GARROS

May 31, 2025

Arthur Fils

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Good morning. Bonjour.

You probably saw it yesterday in the press release, but Arthur unfortunately has to pull out of Roland Garros, so he's here this morning to explain exactly what happened.

ARTHUR FILS: To be quick, I had some issue with the back since a long time, and during the match against Munar it gets worse. Then I did some exams. The exams were not good at all. Got some stress fracture.

Yeah, whatever, we decide with the team it was better to stop now, because if I'm stopping now, I could stop for only four to six weeks. If I was pushing myself too much, I would probably stop for a couple of months.

This is not what we are trying to do, so yeah, had to make a choice.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. I guess, first of all, that's obviously quite a significant injury. How proud are you of your efforts of getting through that match, given you have such a significant injury?

ARTHUR FILS: You mean during the match against Munar? I gave everything. I couldn't go for more. At the end of the second set, I could feel that the back was not good at all.

It was one thing with the team and with the doctor, we said, Okay, whatever, you have some issue before the tournament, but if you want to play, we just have to play without painkiller. I guess we know you can still play.

During the match against Munar, at the end of the second set, I said, You know what, I'm going to call the doctor and I'm going to take painkiller.

But then I understood that the back was not good at all, but because of the crowd, I could make it in the fifth. But yeah, then no chance to play.

Q. Just to clarify, does it mean that you have to skip the entirety of the grass season and get back on the hard courts?

ARTHUR FILS: That's the question. I don't know yet. I have to see with the team, with the doctor. For sure I'm going to skip some tournaments. I don't know which one yet. I will try to be ready for Wimbledon, but we are not sure. To be honest, we don't know. Let's see.

Q. Is it one of your vertebrae that is broken, has a stress fracture?

ARTHUR FILS: One of what?

Q. Is it one of your vertebrae?

ARTHUR FILS: Yeah, it is.

Q. Is it the lower or the upper?

ARTHUR FILS: It's the lower back. I got this issue a couple of times already when I was young. I don't remember. I don't know if it's L-3 or L-5. L-5? Yeah, L-5. So yeah, I got some issue like this in the past already.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in French.

Q. Could you repeat in French why you're actually withdrawing?

ARTHUR FILS: I had problems before the tournament. We made the decision to play nonetheless, but it got worse when I played against Munar, honestly. We did some examinations, and last night around 6:30 we understood that I could not play any further against Rublev. This is why I'm actually withdrawing.

Q. In terms of recovery and care, will you undergo surgery? Is there a risk? And are you going to skip the whole grass season and Wimbledon?

ARTHUR FILS: I don't think I'm going to have to undergo surgery. I don't think so. It's a good question, but I don't think so.

As for the grass season, as I said earlier, I don't know yet. We'll see if I can be ready for Wimbledon. I'm not sure. We'll see. It's on hold for the moment.

It will take time. I'm only 20 years old. I don't want to be in a hurry on the tour. I don't need to ramp up everything. I need to be ready for the hard court season, for the end of the year, and this is for the best.

Q. I wondered how you were actually taking this. This happened last year to Lehecka. It seems that you already keep yourself together. You have a lot of frustration, but you manage to manage that.

ARTHUR FILS: Yes, it's part of a top-level athlete's life. It's an injury that I'm familiar with. It doesn't concern me so much.

I need to undergo the right treatment, and then I'll be back on again. But I still have 10, 12 Roland Garros ahead of me to play. So it's a pity, because I actually had a wonderful match against Munar, playing in front of my home crowd. It was fantastic.

But then, towards the end of the match, I knew that I wouldn't be able to play the next round. And it was not just cramps that was the problem, as Munar alleged.

Q. So this back injury is dating back to your childhood? Even if at 20 years old, you're very solid, it seems that maybe your body is not settled yet? Maybe you have to do a lot of work beyond the way you hit the ball? You need to find the right shape in terms of fitness to be up and ready for the years to come?

ARTHUR FILS: Yes, it's true. I need to be fit at 20 years old. I don't think I'm not as fit as I would be when I'm 25. I still have a lot of work to do to manage so many things, to manage longer and longer matches and intensive matches longer and longer and will continue working, anyway.

Q. You seem to say that your back pain has been going on for some time. Can you elaborate? Did something happen to you when you were a kid?

ARTHUR FILS: It's an injury that happens quite often when you are a child. It's a stress fracture injury. It happened to me twice. I had to wear a back brace. Then it healed. But also, my lower back is arched, so then I had a bone marrow edema. It's coming back right now.

So I have to find a way to cure that and to get past that.

Q. We would have liked to see you today and in days to come, but have you found a seat in the Parc des Princes or in Germany to watch the Champions League?

ARTHUR FILS: I would have liked, but I have so much more to do, much more important than watching the Champions League. Of course, I'll be in front of the TV, but I won't be in Munich, and I won't be in the Parc des Princes. I didn't do it on purpose.