Francisco Cerundolo’s Queen’s Club title already had enough weight on its own. The Argentine had just won the biggest tournament of his career, becoming the first player from Argentina to lift the trophy at the historic London grass-court event. He had fought back from a set and a break down against Tommy Paul, survived a three-hour final, and delivered the first ATP 500 title of his career one week before Wimbledon.
Then came the part that made the moment feel bigger than tennis. After sealing a 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-3 win over Paul in the HSBC Championships final on Sunday, Cerundolo turned toward his box and saw his father, Alejandro, who had made it to London after a last-minute flight from Argentina.
For most players, having a parent in the box is common. For Cerundolo, it was anything but. Alejandro had never traveled abroad to watch his son compete on the ATP Tour. A fear of flying had kept him away during Francisco’s rise, even as the 27-year-old became one of South America’s strongest players and a steady presence near the top of the men’s game.
That changed at Queen’s. After Cerundolo defeated Brandon Nakashima in the semifinals on Saturday, Alejandro boarded a flight from Buenos Aires to London. The timing was tight. Cerundolo knew his parents were due to land around mid-afternoon, and he also knew a quick final could mean they would miss the match entirely.
Instead, the final became a marathon. Cerundolo and Paul battled for three hours and two minutes, the longest men’s final in Queen’s Club history. Paul, the 2024 champion, took the opening set in a tiebreak and then moved ahead by a break in the second. Cerundolo looked as if he might run out of answers after a demanding week in which he repeatedly had to survive three-set matches.
But the Argentine kept digging. He turned the second set around, forced a deciding set, and then held off Paul’s late resistance after the American saved three match points while serving at 2-5 in the third. Cerundolo finally closed it out on his own serve, collapsing to the grass after securing the most important title of his career.
Only then did he realize his father had made it. Cerundolo later said he did not see his parents during the match. He only spotted them when he went to celebrate with his team. The scene gave Queen’s one of its most emotional moments of the week: a son winning the biggest trophy of his career on grass, and a father overcoming a long-held fear to witness the end of it.
The victory also carried serious tennis meaning. Cerundolo became the first Argentine champion at Queen’s Club, a tournament long considered one of the most important stops before Wimbledon. He also snapped Paul’s nine-match winning streak at the event and claimed his fifth tour-level title. It was his second title of the 2026 season, following his win on home soil in Buenos Aires.
For Argentina, it was another reminder that Cerundolo has become more than a clay-court threat. He now owns two grass titles, having also beaten Paul in the 2023 Eastbourne final. Winning at Queen’s puts him in rare company and gives him real momentum before Wimbledon.
The family angle runs deeper, too. Francisco’s younger brother, Juan Manuel Cerundolo, has also enjoyed a breakout stretch, including a major Roland Garros win over world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and a climb into the top 50. Together, the Cerundolo brothers have given Argentine tennis one of its strongest storylines of the season.
But on Sunday in London, Francisco owned the moment. The title was historic. The comeback was gritty. The timing, with Father’s Day being celebrated in both the United Kingdom and Argentina, made it almost too perfect.
Cerundolo left Queen’s with the biggest trophy of his career, a surge of confidence before Wimbledon, and a memory his family will not forget.
His father got on the plane. His son made sure the match lasted long enough for him to see history.
