Matteo Arnaldi has revealed that he could not eat for two days after a mystery illness forced him to withdraw from the French Open semi-final, just 20 minutes before the match was scheduled to begin. The Italian, who had reached the last four in Paris after a series of five-set victories, was devastated to pull out of the biggest match of his career.
Arnaldi's French Open run ended abruptly by illness
Arnaldi, 25, had battled through exhausting matches, including a five-hour, 26-minute thriller against Frances Tiafoe, to reach the semi-finals. However, on the day of his match against compatriot Flavio Cobolli, he woke up at 1am vomiting and could not sleep. Less than 30 minutes before the match, he withdrew, leaving fans and officials stunned.
Speaking at an unusual joint press conference with Cobolli shortly after the withdrawal, Arnaldi explained that he had been unable to keep food or drink down. In the weeks since, he has recovered but still does not know the exact cause of the illness. “We don't actually know for sure. I never did analysis or anything, but we think it was a virus or something, because on the day of the match, I wasn't feeling okay, and then the day after as well, I wasn't at my best, and then I flew back home. And Sunday at lunch, I started to eat and drink again,” Arnaldi said after qualifying for the Eastbourne Open.
Recovery and return to action at Eastbourne
Arnaldi added that he did not eat for two full days, plus breakfast on the morning of the match. “Every time I would drink or I would try to eat, I would go vomit again. It wasn't the best, but what can you do?” he said. The illness was similar to a bout of food poisoning he experienced in Acapulco the previous year, though that was worse.
After withdrawing on Friday, June 5, Arnaldi did not return to a tennis court until the following week. He watched the final, where Cobolli lost to Alexander Zverev in five sets. “I did [watch it], unfortunately! I'm not gonna comment! I just know that it would have been a good semi-final and if I won that, it would have been a good final for me as well,” Arnaldi said.
From Grand Slam semi-final to ATP 250 qualifying
Arnaldi’s ranking skyrocketed from outside the top 100 to inside the top 40 after his French Open run, but he still had to go through qualifying at the ATP 250 event in Eastbourne because the entry deadline had passed when he was ranked lower. He beat two British players in qualifying and now faces Giles Hussey in the main draw.
“It definitely wasn't easy to go from the semi-final of Roland Garros to play qualies here. I had to use some mental strength,” the Italian laughed. He also noted that he is managing a foot injury, which prevented him from transitioning quickly to grass courts.
New goals: eyeing ATP Finals in Turin
Arnaldi’s career-best Grand Slam run has changed his season plans. He is now No. 24 in the ATP Race to Turin, and the top eight qualify for the season-ending ATP Finals in Italy. “It's a weird feeling. Everything happened so fast that we actually didn't plan that, but obviously, now, we are planning to play differently throughout the season,” he said. “So it changes a lot, but definitely I'm thinking also about Turin. I'm like 22, I think, in the race. So it's not impossible.”
He added that his main focus is to play many matches and win consistently, especially since he has few ranking points to defend until next year. “Last year, I missed a lot. The first part of the year, until Miami, I missed a lot as well. I was missing playing tennis. I was missing spending time on court. So I'm just happy to be here, happy to play again the way I want and get a lot of wins,” Arnaldi said.
