Goran Ivanisevic Says “Biggest Talent” Arthur Fils Can Break Into Top 10 Before the End of the Year

Arthur Fils has been a better player since hiring Goran Ivanisevic as his coach earlier this season. Last year, after sustaining a serious back injury that kept him out of action for months, he was written off, but Ivanisevic has helped the 22-year-old the most this season, making him the biggest French talent on tour.

Fils showed he was a player to be reckoned with last year, when he reached the quarter-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters. He lost to Carlos Alcaraz in three sets, but it was voted as the 2025 ATP Tour Match of the Year. But a few weeks later, he suffered a back injury, which led to months on the sidelines.

In February, the Frenchman returned to the tour with Ivanisevic as his coach, and he reached the final of the Qatar Open, which was just his third match on his return from injury. But he didn’t win the title, losing to Alcaraz in straight sets. Fils needed to wait two months to finally get his hands on his first title this season.

That came at the Barcelona Open. He was not the favorite to win the tournament, but he showed resilience on the court, coming from behind to beat Rafael Jodar in the semi-finals and then cruising past Andrey Rublev in the final. It was his first title in over a year on tour thanks to Ivanisevic’s guidance.

Fils has admitted that his goal in the future is to break into the top 5 of the ATP rankings, something he has never done in his career. During an interview with Croatia’s Sportske Novosti, Ivanisevic revealed that Fils has a top 5 player talent and he’s capable of breaking into the elite group before the end of the season:

It’s a shame that at the moment when he was in shape, he had problems with injuries. We found the right people to solve it. He played Wimbledon; it could have been better, but it was great that he played at all. I think he’s capable of entering the Top 10 by the end of the year, and he’s definitely a Top 5 player.

Ivanisevic will also hope that his partnership with Fils is a long-term one. Last year, the legendary coach had a difficult time on tour. He was hired by Elena Rybakina, but they worked together for just weeks. He then had a tumultuous relationship with Stefanos Tsitsipas as their partnership lasted for just a month, despite promising signs earlier on.

Goran Ivanisevic reveals why he likes working with Arthur Fils

Goran Ivanisevic is one of the few coaches to have won a Grand Slam and coached a player to win one. He won the Wimbledon Championship in 2001 and reached a career-high ranking of World No.2. He coached Marin Cilic to win his first and only Grand Slam at the 2014 US Open. He also helped Novak Djokovic win more than six Slams.

His success as a coach has given him more respect on tour. However, after his partnership with Stefanos Tsitsipas, he admitted that he would not work with a player who is not willing to give his best on the court, stressing that Tsitsipas was a bit lazy. During the aforementioned interview, the Croatian coach highlighted why he loves his partnership with Arthur Fils:

I’m super happy, he’s exactly the type of player I wanted to work with. He’s young, he’s one of the biggest talents, someone whose game is enjoyable, he’s attractive; he’s powerful.

Fils has only lost eight of his 31 matches this season, which is commendable. He reached the semi-finals of the Miami Open and Madrid Open. He withdrew from the French Open due to injury and was back for the Wimbledon Championships, where he couldn’t get past Matteo Berrettini in the second round. The 22-year-old will be back on the court this North American hard-court swing.

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