Alexander Bublik can be very dangerous on indoor hard courts if he finds confidence and gets into rhythm, and he showed signs of that in his opening-round win over the in-form Alejandro Tabillo at Vienna. The victory also ended a two-match losing streak at this venue, as he had previously fallen in the final qualifying round and the first round during his only prior visit in 2019.
The last four times Bublik managed to get past the opening round at ATP-level events, he went on to remain unbeaten throughout the week, winning four ATP titles in a row across three different surfaces in Halle, Gstaad, Kitzbühel, and Hangzhou. These impressive performances propelled Bublik to a career-high ranking of No. 16.
Bublik has won four titles on the main tour this year, but surprisingly, none have come on indoor hard courts, where he is extremely dangerous. It will be interesting to see if he can add an indoor title to his collection in the coming days and weeks. He has long been a prolific competitor on indoor hard courts, accumulating over 100 wins on this surface, and three of his four ATP titles before 2025 were also won at indoor events.
Making his first appearance at an indoor ATP event this year, Francisco Cerúndolo dominated Alex Michelsen in straight sets to reach the second round in Vienna. It was a much-needed confidence boost for the Argentine, who has struggled in recent months and has not even won back-to-back matches since Toronto in July.
Despite facing challenges for half of the 2025 season, Cerúndolo has maintained a solid 4-5 record against top-20 players this year. His most recent top-20 victory came on indoor hard courts at the Laver Cup last month, where he defeated Holger Rune.
Head-to-head: Francisco Cerúndolo leads 1-0. Matches involving Alexander Bublik are always unpredictable, regardless of the opponent or conditions. However, if he comes in with strong motivation and focus and plays near his potential, he should be able to comfortably handle the current version of Cerúndolo.
