Paris, May 31: In an exhilarating match at the French Open, Jackery Swajda defeated Francisco Cerundolo in a five-set thriller, winning 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3. This victory marks the first time the ATP-ranked 85th player has reached the fourth round of a major tournament.
Swajda’s win comes shortly after the passing of his father, Tom, who lost his battle with cancer last October. After overcoming World No. 26 Cerundolo in a match that lasted 3 hours and 3 minutes on Court 14, Swajda pointed skyward in tribute.
Despite taking a two-set lead, Swajda appeared to lose his grip as Cerundolo mounted a strong comeback. However, in the decisive set, Swajda broke Cerundolo’s serve twice, establishing a 4-1 lead.
Serving for the match at 5-3, Swajda faced two match points but quickly found himself in a break point situation. He saved it with an ace and clinched the match on his third match point. Swajda now leads the ATP head-to-head series against Cerundolo 2-1, having previously defeated him in Winston-Salem in 2024.
By reaching the fourth round, Swajda is set to achieve a new career-high ranking in the ATP standings. Currently, he has climbed 26 spots to reach No. 59. His next challenge is against 10th seed Flavio Cobolli, who recently ended Swajda’s six-match winning streak by defeating 18th seed Lerner Tien 6-2, 6-2, 6-3.
According to Infosys Stats, Cobolli converted seven of 13 break points against Tien, marking his second appearance in the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament, following his quarter-final run at Wimbledon in 2025. The 24-year-old, currently ranked 14th in the world, is the fourth highest-ranked player remaining in the draw, behind Alexander Zverev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Andrey Rublev.
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