Francisco Cerúndolo unstoppable: storms into Australian Open 2026 third round | OneFootball

Argentina’s No. 1 racket continues his journey on oceanic soil: Francisco Cerúndolo (21st) displayed high-level tennis, eliminating Bosnian Damir Dzumhur (66th) 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 in 1h 37min of action to match his historic record at the Australian Open. What’s the next challenge? Andrey Rublev (15th) as he seeks a spot in the fourth round.

The 27-year-old Argentine, ranked 18th in the world last season and owner of 3 titles (Bastad, Eastbourne, and Umag), started his season with an early loss at the ATP 250 in Adelaide against Spaniard Jaume Munar. He practically had to start from scratch upon his arrival at Melbourne Park.

There, as the eighteenth seed, he began his campaign with a straight-sets victory over Chinese player Zhizheng Zhang 6-3, 7-6 (0), 6-3 in 2h 8min, heading directly to his next challenge: Bosnian Damir Dzumhur.

In the lead-up, the record put the South American in a favorable position thanks to his performances last season in Bastad (6-3, 0-6, 6-3) and Paris (6-3, 6-3). But a Grand Slam is a different story, and with a player like Dzumhur, the situation was uncertain until the ball started bouncing on the court.

After a small stumble that put him 0-2 down on the score, Pablo Cuevas’s protégé got back on track by winning five consecutive games and taking control of the match. This situation continued over the next 97 minutes of play.

With 79% of points won on his first serve, 31 winners, and 7 out of 12 break opportunities converted, he managed to claim the match 6-3, 6-2, 6-1, matching his historic record on oceanic soil.

In the third round, a result he achieved in 2023 and 2025, he will try to broaden his horizons even further in the tournament. To do so, he must face Russian Andrey Rublev.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.