Arthur Fils has endured a very challenging year with an injury which appears to still be an issue.
Fils has been struggling with a back injury since the French Open, where he withdrew mid-tournament after coming through to win a dramatic five set match against Jaume Munar.
The Frenchman has only played one tournament since then, with Fils ending his season early and has subsequently fallen from his career-high ranking of world number 14 to number 40.
Fils has recently provided an update on his back injury, but he has now withdrawn from an upcoming exhibition event.
Arthur Fils comments on 2026 return date after withdrawing from exhibition
Tennis players are sometimes criticised for playing exhibitions, but for Fils it was an opportunity to prepare himself for the upcoming season.
Fils was scheduled to take part in the new World Tennis Continental Cup (WTCC) at the end of December in Shenzhen, China, where Iga Swiatek, Elena Rybakina and Andrey Rublev are also set to compete, alongside others.
However, Fils will no longer be heading to China after withdrawing from the event, and he has now released a statement in a video message to the tournament.
In this statement, Fils still implied that he was planning to return to the ATP Tour for the start of the 2026 season.
“Hey guys, Arthur Fils here. Yeah, so due to my past injury like everyone knows I will not be able to play the WTCC at the end of the year,” Fils said in a video on Instagram.
“So yeah, I’m going to be back on tour in the start of 2026 so I wish everyone a great competition there, I hope you guys are going to enjoy and see you guys soon.”
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Arthur Fils makes contrasting comments about his return date
While it appears positive that Fils is still planning on returning at the start of the 2026 season, it contradicts recent comments he made in an interview with 20 Minutes.
In this interview, Fils suggested that he was more focussed on the process of recovery and did not have an actual return date in mind.
“The most important thing now is the upcoming training period,” he noted. “It’s going to be about continuing to work hard, training well both therapeutically and physically — continuing with treatment. But I don’t have a date yet. Frankly, that’s not the most important thing.
“Honestly, [recovery] is going really well. Obviously you have to be patient; it takes time. But everything is fine.”
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More will become apparent about Fils’ actual plan when the Australian Open entry list is released, as he looks to play his first Grand Slam tournament since the French Open.
However, due to falling down the rankings, Fils will very likely not be seeded at a major for the first time since Wimbledon in 2023.
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