Honoring Late Dad, Spirited Svajda Fights Into Roland Garros Fourth Round

By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, May 30, 2026
Photo credit: Dan Istitene/Getty

The tennis court has been a comfort zone for Zach Svajda during times of torment.

Today, the 85th-ranked Svajda transformed Court 14 to a launching pad.

A spirited Svajda survived cramps, fatigue and his opponent’s fiery forehand, stunning Francisco Cerundolo 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3 to battle into the Roland Garros fourth round in his main-draw debut.

“I’m a little bit tired. My legs started cramping a little bit. I didn’t want to show it too much, so I just tried to shorten the points a little bit more,” Svajda told the media in Paris. “He started to up his game, play well.

“When I lost the third and fourth, I told myself, just keep trusting, keep believing, and you never know what could happen. There was the great atmosphere out there. The crowd really helped me. Thankfully it went my way.” 

Three hours, three-minutes after scoring the greatest win of his career,  Svajda crashed to the red clay like a man plunging into a pool on a scorching day.

Soaking in the moment, Svajda shed tears of joy—and gratitude.

Grand Slam tennis is all about timing and  Svajda’s conquest of the 25th-seeded Argentinean comes on his late father Tom Svajda’s birthday.  Tom Svajda was a teaching pro who passed away last year.

Carrying a meager 3-2 career clay-court record—and armed with the major memories of his dad’s teaching—Svajda played dynamic tennis closing his first career five-set victory.

Fueled by his father’s memory and advice—”believe in yourself and enjoy the moment”—the 23-year-old San Diego native realized his dream day with his dad close to his heart.

“You know, it’s like I’m dreaming right now, in a dream. It’s crazy,” Svajda told the media in Paris. “Today was so special, too, because it’s also my dad’s birthday. 

“I know he’s watching from above. It just makes it so special.”

Fulfilling a shared father-son dream by reaching a Grand Slam second week provoked water works in Svajda.

“Like I said, it’s my dad’s birthday today. I was thinking about that too,” he said of the final game. “I was nervous. I really want to — I know he’s proud of me, and I want to perform well and win. 

“When I got that match, the last point, I just teared up, fell to the ground like, Oh, my gosh, what is happening?” 

The 5’9” baseliner has shown sharp court sense, a flair for acute angles and admirable guts in this inspired Roland Garros run that comes about four years after he recalls playing his first tournament on red clay.

Three years ago, Svajda made his French Open qualifying debut losing to Juan Manuel Cerundolo, the lefty younger brother of Francisco who gained international acclaim winning 18 of the last 20 games toppling a cramping world No. 1 Jannik Sinner on Thursday.

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After dispatching the 25th-seeded Francisco Cerundolo today, Svajda said while he’s shocked by his performance, he always believed he’d find his footing on clay after growing up on Southern California hard courts.

“I’m definitely shocked, surprised for sure. Yeah, like I said, it hasn’t kicked in yet,” Svajda said. “It’s crazy. I’m just taking it all in. You know, I knew I would get good on the clay. 

“I thought maybe in a few years, but I never expected right now. I’m very grateful and blessed and just taking it all in.”

After Cerundolo roared back to force a fifth set today, Svajda said he felt the cramps coming.

Playing with a sense of urgency in the decider, Svajda didn’t sit back and wait for miscues—he took the match to Cerundolo.

Undersized in today’s pro tennis of goliaths, Svajda serves bigger than his size suggests. He cracked a 134 mph serve today and his average first-serve speed of 117 mph was 5 mph faster than Cerundolo. 

Drilling crackling serves down the T on the ad side today, Svajda surprised Cerundolo with his fearlessness challenging one of the best forehands in the field.

In the final set, Svajda served 67 percent and won 18 of 22 first serve points—10 more first serve points than Cerundolo in the decider.

Surely, his father and biggest fan would have beamed with his pride as his brother, Trevor Svajda, an all-American tennis standout at SMU, was watching on TV back home.

The 23-year-old Svajda was one of six American men to reach Roland Garros third round this month—most since 1996—and will face Italian Davis Cup hero Flavio Cobolli for a quarterfinal spot.

The 10th-seeded Cobolli shredded Learner Tien 6-2, 6-2, 6-3. 

A smiling Svajda shared a bear hug with Big Foe, who leaped into the stands in a group hug celebrating his epic victory on Thursday, as both Americans aim to keep their Paris thrill rides going.

“Oh, [Tiafoe] was super happy for me. He gave me, like, a big hug,” Svajda said. “He was just talking how good I’m playing. He was shocked too. 

“Like, Dude, this is clay court, what’s going on? I’m, like, Dude, I have no idea what’s going on. He’s a great guy. It was funny.”