Cobolli reaches French Open final after Arnaldi viral withdrawal

Flavio Cobolli advanced to the French Open final without hitting a shot in his semifinal, after Matteo Arnaldi withdrew shortly before Friday’s match with a viral illness. The abrupt exit on Court Philippe-Chatrier reshaped the Roland Garros draw, pushed Cobolli into his first Grand Slam final and underlined how quickly sickness can alter the last days of a major.

Arnaldi, the world number 104, had been due to face his close friend after the pair’s path through Paris had already been unusually punishing. He said he felt dizzy and had vomited overnight on Thursday, and the decision came after he arrived at the court unable to continue. Organisers announced the withdrawal in the press room and said the public would be refunded, a rare administrative footnote to a semifinal that never began.

The two Italians later held a joint press conference, sitting three metres apart, a vivid image of how modern tennis handles health risks even at the sport’s biggest events. Cobolli, the 10th seed and world number 14, said he was devastated for Arnaldi and admitted the moment hit him hard. “When he came to me an hour ago I almost cried,” Cobolli said.

Arnaldi’s run to the last four had already carried a heavy physical price. He reached the semifinal after Matteo Berrettini retired injured in the quarter-finals, and he had spent 17 hours and 42 minutes on court through four matches at Roland Garros. The ATP says that was the longest route to a Grand Slam quarter-final it has recorded since it began tracking match times in 1991, a striking measure of the endurance demands that have become routine deep in majors.

Cobolli now moves on to Sunday’s final against Alexander Zverev, who beat Jakub Menšík in four sets to reach his fourth career Grand Slam final. Zverev is still chasing a first major title and leads Cobolli 3-1 in their head-to-head record, including a 6-2, 7-6(4), 6-1 victory over the Italian at Roland Garros in 2025. The withdrawal was only the fourth Open Era Grand Slam semifinal, men’s or women’s, to end by walkover, a reminder that at this stage of a major, illness and injury can be as decisive as serve or return.