Tennis stars are gearing up for the North American hard-court season as the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) build toward the US Open, the final Grand Slam of the year.
For Argentine players, it represents one last chance to make an impact at a major after a disappointing Wimbledon campaign.
The two key tune-up events ahead of New York are the Canadian Open — held in Montreal for the men and Toronto for the women — followed by the Cincinnati Open.
With 1,000 ranking points on offer to each champion, there is plenty at stake.
Cerúndolo, Argentina’s biggest hope in the men’s draw
At least eight Argentine players are set to compete in the men’s draw in Montreal and Cincinnati, led by Francisco Cerúndolo, the country’s highest-ranked player.
Montreal, in particular, could present a strong opportunity. World No. 1 Jannik Sinner of Italy, No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic have all withdrawn from the tournament.
The world No. 20 has not played since his first-round exit at Wimbledon in June. It was a disappointing result for the 27-year-old, who had just captured the biggest grass-court title of his career at Queen’s Club and appeared poised for his best showing yet at the All England Club.
Argentina’s top-ranked player will be looking to improve a modest record on North American hard courts.
In Canada, he lost in either the first or second round in each of his first two appearances before withdrawing from the 2024 edition with an injury. In 2025, he reached the round of 16 before retiring from his match against Germany’s Alexander Zverev.
His record in Cincinnati has been even less encouraging. He suffered first-round exits in 2022, 2023 and 2024, then missed the tournament in 2025.
He arrives in North America with limited match play. After not competing since Wimbledon, he advanced to the second round in Los Cabos on Thursday following the retirement of American Tristan Boyer (162). He will next face France’s Arthur Gea (127).
Etcheverry continues to make progress
Tomás Etcheverry (31) has steadily improved his results on North American hard courts.
At the Canadian Open, he was eliminated in the first round on his Montreal debut in 2023 before claiming his first main-draw victory the following year. In 2025, he reached the round of 32, his best result at the tournament.
His Cincinnati record has mirrored that progression. After a first-round loss on his tournament debut in 2023, Etcheverry claimed his first main-draw victory in 2024 before falling to American Ben Shelton in the second round.
However, he was unable to build on his Canadian performance in 2025, once again exiting in the second round.
Following his Wimbledon disappointment, Etcheverry rediscovered some form by reaching the semifinals in Kitzbühel. That momentum did not carry into Washington, where he opened his North American hard-court campaign with a 6-3, 6-4 defeat to American Brandon Nakashima (33).
The rest of the Argentine male contingent
Mariano Navone (44), Juan Manuel Cerúndolo (50), Sebastián Báez (53), Román Burruchaga (58), Thiago Tirante (64) and Camilo Ugo Carabelli (75) are all set to feature in the main draws of both tournaments, while Marco Trungelliti (91) could yet join them through qualifying.
Báez has produced the strongest results of the group on North American hard courts.
In 2023, he won his first ATP title on that surface at the Winston-Salem Open before reaching the third round at the US Open, his best Grand Slam performance, where he was eliminated by eventual finalist Daniil Medvedev.
He recently reached the quarterfinals in both Båstad and Kitzbühel, but has yet to begin his North American hard-court campaign.
Burruchaga, meanwhile, enjoyed a deep run in Umag, reaching the semifinals before losing to Spain’s Daniel Mérida (61). Juan Manuel Cerúndolo also made the semifinals in Gstaad, defeating two-time Roland Garros finalist Casper Ruud (13) before falling to Belgium’s Raphael Collignon (37).
Sierra once again the lone Argentine in the women’s draw
On the women’s side, the story remains much the same. Solana Sierra (86) is the only Argentine confirmed for the Canadian Open in Toronto.
The 22-year-old is the only Argentine ranked high enough to gain direct entry into the main draw. The qualifying field has yet to be finalized.
Sierra is coming off a strong Wimbledon, where she pushed American star Coco Gauff to the limit in their second-round matchup, before losing in a deciding third-set tiebreak after holding the chance to close out the match.
Her preparations for Toronto, however, have gotten off to a slow start. Sierra was beaten 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 by Russia’s Tatiana Prozorova (181) in the first round of the WTA 250 event in Memphis.
