Francisco Cerúndolo is turning out to be one of the stars of the 2025 Mutua Madrid Open. The Argentinian is now in the semifinals of the tournament and has become, alongside Carlos Alcaraz and Alex de Minaur, the player with the most wins this year (24). These are the second Masters 1000 semifinals of his career and he will be bidding to reach his first final in the category. It is a huge match for the Buenos Aires native, who visited Iguales, the tournament’s official podcast, where ‘Gravesen’ got to know the 26-year-old a little better.
Their lively conversation touched on many topics including a number that are completely unrelated to tennis. The Top 20 player acknowledged that Gladiator is his favourite film: “I love it, I could watch it over and over again. It’s incredible to see someone who is able to keep overcoming their problems. I can identify with the Gladiator”. In his quarterfinal against Jakub Mensik he showed exactly what he meant.
He is a keen gamer: “I played a lot with my brother Juanma, when we were younger I used to beat him, but he started playing more and started beating me. I like Call of Duty more. Now I’m playing less but there were some years when I played so much”.
What do Sundays look like in the Cerúndolo household?: “I have a brother and a sister. We talk a lot about sport but we try to avoid tennis. My sister was a professional hockey player but now she has retired and she works in a bank. We try to talk about something else because she gets bored of tennis”.
Breakfast with River Plate. A few days ago, the Buenos Aires native was overheard asking someone the result of the ‘Super Clasico’ between River and Boca just a few seconds after his match was over: “I’m a big River fan. Unfortunately, they play at bad times of day for me sometimes, but I try to watch as much as possible without interrupting my sleep. If I can’t, I’ll watch in the morning while I have my breakfast”. A true fan.
Over the years, he has forged friendships with a number of Argentinian footballers who often meet up with him in various places around the world: “In the last year I’ve managed to meet a number of Argentina players who play here in Europe. It’s nice to be able to support them and for them to come and watch us play tennis. Rodri de Paul is a great person and it’s really a joy to spend time with them. In fact, last year I had a barbecue here in Madrid with Angel Correa and Nahuel Molina. They’re great guys”.
The level of the world’s Top 50 has sky-rocketed in recent years: “Nowadays the level is very high. Maybe anyone can win any match. A few years ago perhaps only four or five people won all the tournaments, but now everyone is good enough to do big things. So many players hit the ball well”.
