Taylor Fritz (No. 11) beats Arthur Fils (No. 6) 6-3, 6-4 in the round of 16 of the Paris Masters on Thursday 5 November. Luca Van Assche knocks out Lorenzo Musetti 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 and is the only Frenchman left: he faces Australian qualifier Rinky Hijikata in the quarter-finals. Quentin Halys and Arthur Rinderknech are beaten by Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton.
How did Taylor Fritz beat Arthur Fils?
In 1hr 12min, without facing a single break point, six days after Basel, where Fils retired against him in the quarter-finals with lower back discomfort. Fils, who qualified for the ATP Finals in Turin the day before, leaves his home tournament in the last 16.
In the quarter-finals Fritz meets Carlos Alcaraz (No. 2), who goes through without playing: Matteo Berrettini, who beat Ugo Humbert, withdraws.
How did Luca Van Assche beat Lorenzo Musetti?
In three sets and around 2hr 30min. In the decider, at 3-4, Van Assche saves two break points on his serve, then breaks Musetti at 4-4 on a forehand error from the Italian. He serves for the match, leads 40-0 and takes his first match point with a drop volley.
Musetti had knocked out world No. 1 Alexander Zverev in the second round, 7-6(5), 6-2. For Van Assche, ranked 47th, it is the first Masters 1000 quarter-final of his career.
Who is Rinky Hijikata, Luca Van Assche's opponent?
An Australian qualifier who beat Novak Djokovic (No. 10) in the second round, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, then Argentina's Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the round of 16, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. The two players have never met.
The quarter-final is played on Friday 6 November on Court Central, after Ben Shelton - Tommy Paul, scheduled for 2pm. In the evening, Carlos Alcaraz faces Taylor Fritz (not before 7pm), then Casper Ruud meets Portuguese lucky loser Nuno Borges (not before 8:30pm).
How were Halys and Rinderknech knocked out?
- Quentin Halys loses 7-6(3), 6-4 to Tommy Paul (No. 12) in 1hr 36min. The American faces just one break point, early in the match, and gets the only break of the match at 5-4 in the second set, on his second match point.
- Arthur Rinderknech takes the first set against Ben Shelton (No. 3), who wins 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(5) in 2hr 05min. The Frenchman leads 4-2 in the tie-break before losing five of the last six points.
Halys and Rinderknech are still in the doubles: Halys and Pierre-Hugues Herbert face Frenchmen Theo Arribage and Albano Olivetti in the quarter-finals, and Rinderknech and Benjamin Bonzi meet the top seeds, Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten.
Sources
ATP Tour — Rolex Paris Masters 2026, tableau du simple
Tennis Majors — Rolex Paris Masters 2026: Friday order of play