Fritz turns the tables on Altmeier
The 14th-ranked Fritz avenged his loss to Altmaier in the first round of Roland Garros last year when the German defeated him 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 for the biggest win of his career.
The American wildcard opened his week with a 6-2, 7-5 win over French qualifier Pierre-Hugues Herbert. He reaches his 44th tour-level semifinal and fifth of the season, after Dallas, Stuttgart, Halle and Washington. It is the fifth time in six years that he has reached at least five semifinals in one season.
“I think this whole week I was happy with everything,” Fritz said in his court interview. “I felt confident in all parts of my game in practice as well. I usually have something to complain about. I serve really well and I think I hit the ball very well on both sides.”
Paul ends Moutte’s run and pushes him out of the top 100
Ranked 15th, Paul improved to 3-0 against Moutet. The Frenchman knocked out two-time defending champion Hugo Humbert 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (4) in the first round before beating Felix Balcho 6-4, 6-4. The 94th-ranked Moutet needed a semi-final to stay in the top 100 and will now fall outside it for the first time since April 2024.
Paul defeated France’s Benjamin Bonzi 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-3 in his opener. His 44th win on the season ties Francis Tiafoe for the most by any American male this year. He reaches his 24th tour-level semifinal, sixth of the season and first since Queen’s Club in June.
Competitors since youth
The semi-finals of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Grand Prix revive a rivalry more than a decade old. In 2015, Paul defeated Fritz 7-6, 2-6, 6-2 in the men’s final at Roland Garros, and Fritz defeated him 6-2, 6-7 (4), 6-2 in the men’s final of the US Open. The two later won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.