NBO Montreal Tale of the Tape: Jodar vs. Fils

His opponent, Arthur Fils, doesn’t fall into that category, but is only…22. 

They face off Monday in Montreal for a spot in the semifinals. 

Head-to-Head

You again? 

The pair met two weeks ago at their last tournament, in Washington, in the first round. That was won by Jodar, 7-6 (5), 6-3. 

While it might give the Spaniard the psychological edge, world No. 24 Fils might be looking for a little revenge. 

Jodar prevailed despite landing 48 percent of his first serves. But the good news for Jodar, 19, was that he won a high number of points behind the second serve, 63 percent. 

While Fils only played three matches from mid-May through Washington, he already has three matches under his belt in Montreal. 

Fils won their only other encounter on clay in Barcelona in April, a tournament he went on to win. 

Tournament so far 

Jodar has lost one set so far, not a surprising one, either. Making a quick turnaround from the final in Washington, which was pushed back to last Monday due to rain, he dropped his opening frame against the ever tricky Corentin Moutet. 

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After that, he beat seeds Lorenzo Musetti and Jiri Lehecka. 

While the 6-foot-3 right-hander has been broken seven times, he has broken his opponents 16 times. 

Fils, meanwhile, lost his lone set to Zachary Svajda in his opener before topping two players who can linger for hours on court, Mariano Navone and Cameron Norrie. 

He took part in one of the rallies of the NBO so far, 17 shots against Navone in a battle of backhand slices. 

Tournament history 

Jodar is making his first appearance in Canada and only started playing Masters events this March in Indian Wells. 

This time last year he was ranked around No. 500 in the world and still playing college tennis for the University of Virginia. 

This year’s NBO marks Fils’ best appearance in Canada. He made his debut in 2024, losing his first match to countryman Ugo Humbert, then advanced to the third round last year. 

Unlike Jodar, Fils has landed in a Masters semifinal — twice, both this year, in Miami and Madrid. 

Did you know? 

Jodar’s idol was Rafael Nadal but he wasn’t named after the legendary left-hander. His dad and grandfather are also named ‘Rafael.’ Jodar’s dad is usually the only person in his player box.

Fils is the highest ranked of 10 Frenchmen inside the Top 100. In the last few weeks, three of them won their first title: Quentin Halys, Luca van Assche and Arthur Gea.

History in the making? 

If Jodar goes on to win the title, he would become the first man since Novak Djokovic in 2007 to triumph in his NBO debut. 

Fils would be the first Frenchman to win in francophone Montreal in the Open Era. Jo Wilfried Tsonga lifted the trophy in Toronto in 2014, memorably beating four top 10 players. 

Photo: Sarah-Jäde Champagne/Tennis Canada