It took Francisco Cerundolo some time to find his clay-court bearings after a long stretch away from the surface, but he did so in the nick of time on Thursday to advance to the quarter-finals at the Cordoba Open.
In a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 victory against fellow Argentine Federico Delbonis, the second seed trailed 2-5 in the third set and saved a match point on return at 3-5 before claiming victory on his sixth match point. Cerundolo won the final five games of the two-and-a-half-hour contest.
“I think after 2-5 in the third I played my best tennis of the match,” the 24-year-old said in his on-court interview. “I was more solid, more patient. I was used to playing on hard [courts], faster points, two or three balls. I had to grind here, play more balls. I figured it out at the end of the match and I think that was a key.”
Cerundolo’s most recent clay match was last July, when he reached the Hamburg semi-finals. With Thursday’s win, he advanced to his second tour-level quarter-final since that event.
The World No. 31 created 18 break chances against Delbonis, converting six of those opportunities. Cerundolo claimed the decisive break, to lead 6-5 in the third, with a majestic forehand winner that was perfectly placed, hit inside-out with authority. After he served out the match in a four-deuce game, the countrymen shared a warm embrace at the net.
Cerundolo will next face another Argentine in sixth seed Federico Coria, who advanced to the quarters when Marco Cecchinato retired while trailing 3-6, 1-3.
It was a banner day for the Cerundolo family as Francisco’s brother, Juan Manuel Cerundolo, also reached the last eight with a 7-6(6), 6-1 upset of top seed Diego Schwartzman. The younger Cerundolo, 21, won the Cordoba title as a qualifier in 2021—his lone tour-level triumph. With victory Thursday in the all-Argentine matchup, he improved to 10-0 at the ATP 250 (including his three qualifying wins in 2021).
The World No. 114 will look to extend that streak against Hugo Dellien, who defeated Guido Pella 6-3, 6-4 earlier in the day.
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Also on Thursday, Albert Ramos-Vinolas made a successful start to his Cordoba title defence with three-set victory against Dusan Lajovic.
The 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 result stretched the third seed’s win streak to six matches at the ATP 250, after he claimed the 2022 title with the loss of just one set. He has also won 10 of his past 11 matches in Cordoba, starting with his run to the 2021 final.
Ramos-Vinolas is seeking to become a repeat champion at the same event for the first time this week. All four of his tour-level titles have come on clay, with his Cordoba victory his most recent triumph.
Photo credit: @CordobaOpen / Nicolás Aguilera
In his first clay match of 2023, the third seed played his best tennis in the closing stages against Lajovic to earn his first win of the season. After saving a break point at 2-2 in the third set, Ramos-Vinolas went on to win the final four games of the match, sealing victory with a break to love.
Portugal’s Joao Sousa awaits in the quarter-finals after his 7-5, 7-6(6) win against Cristian Garin.
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