Patrick Kypson, former college teammate of Rinderknech and Vacherot, is writing his own perseverance story

PARIS—At this year’s Roland Garros, the two-highest ranked teenagers on the ATP Tour hail from the host nation. And as it stands, both are the only players under 20 ranked inside the Top 100.

Arthur Fils, 18, comes in on the back of capturing his first ATP title in Lyon, a result that catapulted the Bondoufle native to No. 63. The 82nd-ranked Luca Van Assche, 19, began his spring with a Challenger triumph before taking a set off Novak Djokovic at Banja Luka.

In 2021, the pair of budding talents faced off in a boys’ singles final won by Van Assche. Two years later, the pair of friends could face off in the second round of the men’s event if both find ways to win their main-draw debuts on Monday.

Advertising

"We are close friends and I'm very happy about his results," Van Assche (right) says of Fils. "We're just pushing each other to the top because we know that we have the same level."

Fils will take on No. 29 seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina inside Court Simonne-Mathieu, while Van Assche is set to meet former semifinalist Marco Cecchinato on Court 14. Tennis Channel checked in with the French teenagers over the weekend:

Arthur, congratulations on winning your first ATP title on Saturday. What was achieving that goal like, and how are you switching gears for your major debut?

FILS: Yeah, it has been a great week with my first title. I'm really happy about this week and now I'm really excited to play here, my first Grand Slam. It will be so nice at home with the French crowd. So I will try my best.

You’ve really seemed to embrace playing at home this year, with all 10 of your tour wins coming in France. Are you the type to tap into the energy the crowd is giving, and use that on the court?

FILS: Yeah, yeah, for sure. Because when you play in your country, it's different. All the guys are for you. So I'm going to try to play every time in my country as much as I can. So yeah, it's really nice to play in France.

Advertising

Fils met with press on Sunday ahead of his Roland Garros opener.

Luca, you recently got your first ATP win in Estoril. Like Arthur, you’re in the Top 100. What about you as a player has developed and allowed you to get to this point?

VAN ASSCHE: I grew up a lot these last years. I had a lot of experiences. It was very nice for me to win my first ATP match, but I knew that I have the level because I won three Challengers before. After [playing] against the best players in the world [in] big matches, you are very confident with it and you can just continue like this.

Speaking of big matches, you’ve played Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka within the past six weeks, all on clay. How special were those experiences—sharing the court with these great champions, but also being able to see where your game measures up?

VAN ASSCHE: It was incredible for me. The big goal for me this year is to be ready for Roland Garros, to do a very big tournament here. So of course to play against Stan, Andy and Novak was very great for me. I learned a lot from this and it was very motivating for the next weeks to keep improving.

Advertising

Van Assche played his first major main-draw at this year's Australian Open (l. to Norrie).

For some, this may be the first time they see one of your matches in the stands or on television. What should viewers expect?

FILS: Maybe they are going to get into a fight with me because I'm putting a lot of intensity (smiles). I'm always saying, ‘Come on.’ ‘Let's go.’ And they come with me and they cheer for me. I think when you're coming to see one of my match here, you are going to see a show.

What about you Luca… what type of person are you on court?

VAN ASSCHE: I'm very happy. I'm just enjoying my life on the tour, of course, but also with my family. I'm just a calm person. Very sturdy and I hope you guys enjoy it.

Advertising

I think when you're coming to see one of my match here, you are going to see a show. Arthur Fils

You and Arthur played each other in the junior final here two years ago. Tell us about your connection and being able to have a friend like him provide that extra push.

VAN ASSCHE: I see him every day here in Paris. We train together and he's a very nice person. We are close friends and I'm very happy about his results. We're just pushing each other to the top because we know that we have the same level. So when he's doing good and like, oh, I can do good also.

As for you Arthur, what does it mean to have someone from the same generation with you on this journey?

FILS: I'm really happy with what he's doing now and he's really happy for me, too. So we're trying our best for going to the top level, and I wish him the best. And for sure, we're going to have some good matches in the future.

Advertising