Francisco Cerundolo stays perfect vs. Alexander Zverev, upsets two-time champ in Madrid rematch

Madrid

Cerundolo stays perfect vs. Zverev, upsets two-time champ in Madrid rematch

Argentine improves to 3-0 in Lexus ATP Head2Head

Mutua Madrid Open Francisco Cerundolo in action in Madrid. By ATP Staff

Francisco Cerundolo maintained his perfect Lexus ATP Head2Head record against Alexander Zverev with a 7-5, 6-3 upset of the two-time champion Tuesday at the Mutua Madrid Open. Now 3-0 against the top seed, the Argentine ended Zverev's seven-match winning streak, which dated back to the start of his Munich title run.

In a rematch of their fourth-round encounter from one year ago, Cerundolo repeated the result with another straight-sets win. The 20th seed, who also beat Zverev this season in Buenos Aires, saved the only break point he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

"I'm super happy because I know he loves playing here. He told me last year when I beat him," Cerundolo said after notching his first win on Court Manolo Santana. "He's an incredible player. I have a great relationship with him, so super happy to get another win and to be in the quarter-finals again."

2024 - Cerundolo ✅ 6-3 6-4

2025 - Cerundolo ✅ 7-5 6-3@FranCerundolo repeats the 'W' over top seed Zverev in the Spanish capital!@MutuaMadridOpen | #MMOpen pic.twitter.com/gbM9hr2uUi — ATP Tour (@atptour) April 29, 2025

With the win, Cerundolo joined Arthur Fils as the only players to reach three ATP Masters 1000 quarter-finals this season. He also leads the ATP Tour with seven quarter-finals and 15 clay-court wins on the 2025 season.

"This year I learned to play bad and win matches. I gained the capacity to win playing not my best tennis," Cerundolo said of his strong season. "I'm super happy with what I'm doing during this year."

All five of Cerundolo's victories against Top 5 opponents in the PIF ATP Rankings have come on clay: three against Zverev and two against Casper Ruud. Up two places to No. 19 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings — a mark that would match his career-high — Cerundolo will next face Miami champion and #NextGen ATP star Jakub Mensik. The 19-year-old Czech could pass him in the Live Rankings with a win, while Cerundolo could move up to No. 18 with a victory.

While Cerundolo is through to his seventh career Masters 1000 quarter-final, Zverev was denied his 100th quarter-final appearance at that prestigious level.

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