HSBC Championships 2026: Francisco Cerundolo reaches biggest final of his career at Queen’s
• 3 minute read
Francisco Cerundolo will play the biggest final of his career on Sunday, with the Argentine now just one match away from the HSBC Championships title.
Cerundolo had to come through yet another three-set epic in his semi-final against Brandon Nakashima to win 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4.
It was a marathon battle lasting two hours and 43 minutes, but the Argentinian star just had that extra quality in the big moments to see himself over the line.
“I’m super happy to be honest,” he said. “This was a really challenging match. I think Brandon is playing incredible, amazing during the whole week and today also.
“I stayed there competing. I was saying to the crowd, I’m leaving it all here on the court and it worked out. I’m super happy to be here, in this tournament, in the final.
The seventh seed has won three out of his four matches this week, with the world No.27 now set for his first ATP 500 final.
For a player who confesses to having never played on grass before going professional, Cerundolo is building a reputation as somewhat of a specialist. The Argentine has now won a title in Eastbourne and made a final at Queen’s.
He’s only the second Argentinian to reach the final at The Queen’s Club after David Nalbandian’s run in 2012, and will be looking to become the first champion from his home nation.
“The whole week I’ve been fighting from the first point until the end. None of the matches are easy,” he added.
“It’s tennis. You have to stay there some days. If you leave everything on court you’re happy because it’s the most you can do.
“Today, I’m happy because it’s my first ATP 500 final and it’s on grass.”
Cerundolo was made to work hard against an opponent in Nakashima, who brought relentless energy and consistent ball striking.
It was a high-quality match from both players, but Cerundolo just about had the edge and that extra bit of magic in the defining moments.
Three key stats
- Forehand quality - Cerundolo's forehand quality reached 8.7 compared to the tour average 7.4
- Commanding long rallies - In rallies of nine shots or more, he won 62% of points
- Pressure moments - Cerundolo raised his game in pressure points, increasing his forehand quality to 9.3
Cerundolo was left frustrated after surrendering a break of serve twice in the opener, before Nakashima put together a solid tie-break to take a one-set lead.
Things seemed to go from bad to worse for Cerundolo after Nakashima broke at 2-2, but there were signs that the Argentinian was preparing to seize control.
The Argentine’s forehand was his biggest weapon across the match, with a shot quality of 8.7 compared to Nakashima’s 7.2/10, and so it proved in the big moments.
At 30-30 in the following game, he came through a 32-shot rally to eventually go on and break, before raising his arms to rally the crowd behind him.
It supercharged Cerundolo, who went on a run of four straight games to take the set and then produced a series of stunning forehand winners to move an early break in front during the decider.
Nakashima proved himself a real fighter and kept plugging away to get back to 4-4, but momentum still felt slightly in favour of the former Eatbourne champion, and so it proved.
Facing break point on his serve, Nakashima set a seemingly easy short ball flying into the stands off his frame, which gave Cerundolo the platform he needed to serve out the match.
The challenges don’t get any easier for Cerundolo, who will play either 2024 champion Tommy Paul or Ugo Humbert for a shot at his first ATP 500 title.
Cerundolo holds a positive head-to-head record against both players and will be hoping to make that experience count come Sunday afternoon.
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