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Jun 06, 2026
Analyzed by Llama- 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct

Cobolli into French Open final as Arnaldi withdraws due to illness

AI Summary
Italy's Flavio Cobolli reached his first Grand Slam final at the French Open after his compatriot and semifinal opponent Matteo Arnaldi withdrew due to illness. Cobolli will face Alexander Zverev in the final.

Cobolli's Unexpected Path to the Final

Italy's Flavio Cobolli said he was 'sad and happy at the same time' after reaching his first Grand Slam final at the French Open on Friday, following the last-minute withdrawal due to illness of his last-four opponent and compatriot Matteo Arnaldi.

Arnaldi's Sudden Withdrawal

Just more than 20 minutes before Cobolli and Arnaldi were due to take to Court Philippe Chatrier, tournament organisers announced that the 104th-ranked Italian had been forced to pull out with a 'virus'.

  • Arnaldi had spent the most amount of time on court for a player en route to a Grand Slam semifinal.
  • He began to feel unwell during the night after practice on Thursday, experiencing stomach issues and vomiting.

Cobolli's Reaction and Tribute

Cobolli paid tribute to a tearful Arnaldi, calling him 'a big inspiration for all of us' and 'an amazing player and amazing professional'.

Cobolli will meet Alexander Zverev in Sunday's final, which will produce a new major champion, after the German second seed earlier moved past Jakub Mensik in the other semi-final.

The Road Ahead

Cobolli, the 24-year-old 10th seed, will go into the weekend's final with plenty of rest after his quarterfinal victory over Canadian fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime on Wednesday.

'Maybe having almost four days off is a lot, so you lose the rhythm,' he said. 'Now, I got practice again. I think I will be ready, for sure, for the final, but I also know that I will be fresh, for sure.'