A young Alexandre Muller‘s determined focus once graced sun-drenched French clay. His grit and tactics, though not flamboyant, hinted at a relentless climb. Although he didn’t always live up to his billing, Muller won his first ATP title in Hong Kong earlier this year and then reached the Rio Open final, building anticipation for the Madrid Open. And, on Saturday, in Madrid, Muller showed real grit against Ugo Humbert. Despite losing a tight second-set tiebreak, he rallied. The 28-year-old clinched the final set in another nail-biting tiebreak 7(7)-6(5), reaching the round of 32. This begs the question: Who is this French powerhouse?

Muller’s tennis journey started young- he had a court at home and he began hitting balls with his dad at age six. Interestingly, by his own admission, he was better at soccer before choosing tennis. By 12, he was training at the French national tennis center and moved to Paris at 15. His father, Stefan, works for BNP Paribas, which might explain some of those early tennis connections.

The Frenchman steadily climbed the ranks, breaking into the Top 500 in 2016, Top 250 in 2019, and finally cracking the Top 100 in April 2023 after reaching his first final in Marrakech. He hit a career-high No. 71 in January 2024.

Muller’s breakthrough year was 2023. He reached his first ATP Tour quarterfinal in Doha and made waves on clay by beating seasoned pros like Richard Gasquet and Lorenzo Musetti en route to his first semifinal and final in Marrakech. Then came the biggest win of his career-toppling World No. 6 Andrey Rublev to reach the fourth round of the 2024 Rome Masters 1000.

His tour-level debut was back in 2017 at Roland Garros, and he notched his first tour-level win at the 2021 Australian Open. On the Challenger circuit, Muller boasts a solid 138-121 record with three finals and his maiden title at Blois in 2022, where he even saved a match point in the first round.

2025 kicked off with a bang for Muller, who captured his first ATP Tour title at the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open. He came from behind to beat former World No. 4 Kei Nishikori 2-6, 6-1, 6-3 in the final. That win put him in rare company – he became only the third man in the Open Era to win a tour-level title after losing the first set in every match, joining legends Arthur Ashe and Alexander Bublik.

“Thank you everyone for the support tonight. It’s been an amazing week for me, losing the first set in all the matches,” Muller said emotionally. “I have no words. I’m sorry, I just won the match, but thank you everyone.”

Muller’s calmness under pressure shines through, even in hostile environments. In February, he broke Brazilian teen Joao Fonseca’s homecoming at the Rio Open, capitalizing on the local boy’s 34 unforced errors to win 6-1, 7-6(4). “It was tough to play against such a great player and perhaps 5,000 [fans], but I’m very happy to get the victory today,” Muller said. “I was feeling calm in half of the match. I didn’t take my chances to take the break in the second set and then he was playing better and better. I played a great tie-break to finish the match.”

That cool-headed vibe might come from practicing alongside top players like Jannik Sinner and Roger Federer. Sharing a court with a legend certainly comes with some lessons!

Muller’s journey as a rising star comes with its unique experiences

Alexandre Muller has always idolized Roger Federer. Last year, during his US Open run, he shared how surreal it was to practice with the Swiss maestro. “We practised [on Tour] before, but I never played him in a match unfortunately,” Muller told ATP Tour. He recalled a brief but memorable hit in Dubai. “The practice was very short, because it was the morning, and in the afternoon he had a flight to China to [play] an exhibition. So it was like one hour, an hour and a half, just to play, no points, just hitting the ball, very chill. I was quite young still, 22 years or something. I was on holiday with my parents, and I played some good tennis with Roger.”

Muller’s fandom for Federer runs deep. When asked which match from tennis history he’d love to be part of, he picked the epic 2017 Australian Open final between Nadal and Federer. “I think to be Roger in this match would be amazing – the intensity, [reaching a] fifth set. It was a comeback for Roger after his injury [and he] won the tournament. It was so crazy,” he added. Clearly, those legendary battles left a mark on the Frenchman’s tennis dreams.

Now, Muller is enjoying the best form of his career. He credits some of his improvement to sharing preseason practice sessions with Jannik Sinner as well. “During the preseason, I was practicing with the best player in the world. I think that has helped,” Muller said.

With newfound confidence, Muller is set to take on the American ace Frances Tiafoe at the Madrid Open next. Tiafoe leads their head-to-head, but with Muller’s momentum, who knows how this might turn out? Will the Frenchman pull off another upset? Share your thoughts in the comments below!