"I have to assume that role": Francisco Cerundolo embraces his top 20 status as South America's Roland Garros Hope

Argentina's Francisco Cerundolo stands as South America's brightest tennis beacon headin into Roland Garros, carrying the weight of continental expectations on his shoulders while maintaining the confidence that has propelled him to career-high rankings. The 26-year-old has transformed from promising talent into established threat, currently sitting at the No. 18 after a remarkable 2025 campaign that has seen him outperform almost every top player on tour.

The Buenos Aires native enters the French Open as the maximum hope for Argentine tennis, playing with a consistency that speeks to his evolution as a player. His 2025 season has been great so far, losing the Argentina Open final against Fonseca, reaching the quarter-finals in the Sunshine Double and the semis in Madrid, while defeating a good number of top ten players on his way.

In a recent interview ahead of Roland Garros, Cerundolo addressed the mounting expectations surrounding his performances: "I think one can talk about people's expectations in what you do, but there comes a moment when you're already a reality, that you've been demonstrating it week after week and that it wasn't by chance."

His mature perspective reflects a player who has grown comfortable with success, adding: "I have to also assume that role: today I'm Top 20, I've been playing well, I've been playing many matches against the best in the world, the Top 10, having good weeks... It's also like a reward, I have to feed off that and use it in my favor so it doesn't become pressure."

The numbers support his confidence. Cerúndolo is among only three players with at least 24 victories in 2025, alongside Carlos Alcaraz and Alex De Minaur. More impressively, he leads all players with 16 victories on clay courts, the surface where Roland Garros will be contested. His four wins against Top 10 opponents this season include victories over Alexander Zverev, Alex De Minaur, and Casper Ruud.

Cerundolo will begin his French Open journey against Canadian Gabriel Diallo, trailing 1-0 in their head-to-head but bringing solid clay court experience to their first meeting in the surface.