Where Matteo Arnaldi ranks among the lowest-ranked players ever to reach a major semifinal after advancing in Paris

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Matteo Arnaldi booked his place in a maiden Grand Slam semifinal on Wednesday evening.

The Italian, who has spent 19 hours and 48 minutes on court throughout Roland Garros so far, advanced past compatriot Matteo Berrettini via a walkover to reach the final four of the tournament.

Arnaldi took the first set 7-5, and after going up 5-2 in the second, a hampered Berrettini called a halt to the contest, later citing a hip issue.

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With the result, the 25-year-old, set to face another countryman, Flavio Cobolli next, has just made history.

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According to Opta Ace, Arnaldi is now the third-lowest-ranked player to reach the Roland Garros semifinals since 1990.

At 104th in the world, he surpassed Andrei Medvedev, and is only higher than Filip Dewulf (122) and Henri Leconte (200).

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At Grand Slams overall, Arnaldi ranks 17th all-time, with Bob Giltinan leading the list, having made the 1997 Australian Open semifinals, ranked 365th in the world.

Arnaldi has earned a number of huge wins at Roland Garros, including a second-round triumph over Stefanos Tsitsipas and a fourth-round victory over Frances Tiafoe.

Next, he’ll try to battle past Cobolli, with both stars in search of their first major final appearance.

Matteo Arnaldi’s head-to-head record against Flavio Cobolli

Arnaldi and Cobolli have faced off twice before on the ATP Tour, with their first meeting coming in Umag during the 2023 season.

There, Arnaldi came out on top, beating his fellow Italian in straight sets to advance to the quarterfinals.

Their next bout came in the second round of Roland Garros in 2025, with Cobolli earning his revenge this time.

Cobolli beat Arnaldi in Paris last year in four sets, before falling to Alexander Zverev in the third round.

He may well face Zverev again should he advance past Arnaldi, with the winner set to face either the German or Jakub Mensik in the championship match.