ATP Tour
Fils working with ‘hell of a champion’ Ivanisevic
Former Wimbledon champion Ivanisevic is with Fils in Doha
February 18, 2026
Qatar Tennis
Arthur Fils in action on Wednesday at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha.
By ATP Staff
Arthur Fils is taking advice from a man with plenty of big-stage experience in his bid to bounce back from an injury-plagued 2025 season.
The 21-year-old Frenchman confirmed on Wednesday that he is working with former No. 2 and 2001 Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic. Fils, who was speaking after his 6-1, 7-6(7) second-round victory against Quentin Halys at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha, was full of praise for a man who also coached Novak Djokovic from 2018 to 2024.
“Hell of a champion, winner of a Slam, and he coached a lot of guys, a lot of champions actually,” Fils told ATP Media. “He’s helping me during the season. We are going to try [it out], but I think it’s good for me. It’s maybe the best for me to have his experience as a coach and as a player. So very, very happy that he joined us during this long journey.”
After hitting his career high of No. 14 in the PIF ATP Rankings in April last year, Fils sustained a stress fracture in his back at Roland Garros in late May. He competed at just one more event, the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers in Toronto in early August, for the rest of the year.
Yet after returning to action at the ATP 250 in Montpellier earlier this month, he is now into his second quarter-final of 2026 in Doha. Alongside Ivanisevic, he will on Thursday attempt to navigate a way past Jiri Lehecka to reach the semi-finals at the hard-cout ATP 500.
