Taylor Fritz rallies past Benjamin Bonzi in Paris but admits ongoing serve discomfort

Taylor Fritz came back from a set down to beat Benjamin Bonzi 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and reach the second round of the Paris Masters. Fritz trailed after the first set and had called a medical timeout before turning the match around in the French capital.

A medical timeout and a comeback

Fritz was trailing 3-6 in the first set when he called the trainer. He refused to fade after that, winning the next two sets to complete the victory on Tuesday.

After the match, Fritz explained the reason for the timeout. He said he has been feeling a physical issue since the Lyon Open, where he reached the final before losing to Lorenzo Musetti. Musetti won his first ATP Tour title since 2022 and only his third overall.

Serving discomfort since Lyon

Fritz described the problem as sharp pain that comes and goes. He said it appears at times when he hits cutter serves to the T on the ad side, and sometimes when he snaps his elbow, it hurts in the back when he fully straightens the arm.

He said he felt it in the second game he served and did not call the trainer straight away, because he thought it would warm up as it had in the past. He called for the trainer in the first set, but it felt better afterwards. “Some serves I feel it and sometimes I don’t, but it’s a sharp pain so I get scared to serve sometimes when I feel like it is there,” he said.

The elbow issue is not the only physical concern Fritz has faced in 2026. He developed chronic knee tendinitis during the 2025 offseason, and it has troubled him throughout this season. It forced him to miss most of the clay-court swing.

Tactics against Bonzi

Fritz said he had planned to attack Bonzi’s forehand, but Bonzi was dominating with that shot early on. Fritz said he told himself he needed to serve well enough to avoid being broken, and he began using more sliders after sensing Bonzi was leaning on his flat serve.

He said that change helped him hold serve more easily, and he played more with his backhand. Fritz also noted the speed of the court. He had only one day to practise on it, and it is much quicker than the court he played on last week. He added that Bonzi had already played two matches in qualifying and was used to the conditions, while he was not.

Next up: Molcan, and coaching changes

Fritz will face qualifier Alex Molcan later this week. The two have met only once before on the ATP Tour, when Fritz won 6-4, 6-1, 7-6 in the third round of Wimbledon in 2022.

Fritz was also asked about recent coaching changes by Ben Shelton and Jannik Sinner. Sinner is set to replace Darren Cahill with Magnus Norman, while Shelton has hired Juan Carlos Ferrero, who worked with Carlos Alcaraz for seven years before they parted ways in December 2025. Fritz said he did not react much to the news. “A little [surprised]. But I don’t know, that’s their thing and we’ll see how it works out. I didn’t really put too much thought into it.”