When Francisco Cerundolo secured the title at the HSBC Championships in London on Sunday, his eyes immediately went to his player box in search of one person: his father, Alejandro Cerundolo.
Until this week, Alejandro had never travelled abroad to watch his son compete. A fear of flying had kept him away throughout Francisco’s rise on Tour, but after years of avoiding planes, he made a late decision to change that.
The timing could hardly have been tighter. Following Cerundolo’s semi-final win against Brandon Nakashima on Saturday, Alejandro boarded a flight from Buenos Aires to London. Less than 24 hours later, he arrived at The Queen’s Club in time to catch the closing stages of his son’s three-hour, two-minute victory against Tommy Paul for the title.
“My dad used to travel before. When I was born, he stopped traveling, because he hated planes and he couldn't handle it,” Cerundolo said on Sunday in London. “Last year he started taking therapy and trying to, I don't know, approach his fear. During the last week, he was saying, ‘I will go to the grass season’. He always loved London and always love grass, and he never came.
“Me and my brother and my sister were saying, ‘Okay, Dad, until you are in the plane, we don't trust you, we don't believe you’. They took the plane yesterday evening. I knew they were landing in London around 2:30 p.m. I knew if the match is short, they wouldn't arrive to the tournament, but if the match was longer, maybe they could arrive.
“I saw them when I went to celebrate with my team in the corner. During the match, I didn't see that they made it.”
The timing could hardly have been more dramatic. As Cerundolo battled through the longest Queen’s Club men’s final in tournament history, his father was racing against the clock off it. Only after the final point had been played and the celebrations had begun did the Argentine discover his family had made it.
While Alejandro's trip marked a special first, Cerundolo says one member of the family has long been a familiar face on the road.
“My mum usually travels. She travels a lot,” Cerundolo said. “She tries, when me and my brother are in the same tournament, she tries to come so she can see us at the same moment, because if not, we're away from home a lot.”
It has been a standout year for the Cerundolo family. Earlier this season, the 27-year-old lifted the trophy in Buenos Aires, while Sunday’s triumph in west London marked his first title above ATP 250 level.
In May, his younger brother Juan Manuel Cerundolo made headlines worldwide when he defeated the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings Jannik Sinner in the second round at Roland Garros. The 24-year-old is currently at a career-high No. 45.
“We have a great relationship,” Cerundolo said of his younger brother. “We support each other a lot. We don't have competitiveness or jealous. It's just a love relationship. I wish him always the best, and he does the same. I'm super happy with what he's been doing this past month. He's playing way better, he's improving a lot. He's so passionate about the game and a hard worker.
“Beating Jannik and reaching the fourth round of [Roland Garros], and now breaking into the Top 50. I could not be prouder of him.”
Queen’s Club champion Cerundolo is next scheduled to play at the ATP 250 event in Eastbourne, where he won the title in 2023.
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