Francisco Cerundolo vs Roman Safiullin Preview & Prediction | 2026 Shanghai Masters | Second Round

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Francisco Cerundolo takes on Roman Safiullin at the Shanghai Masters. 

Ranking points: ATP 1000

Start date/time: 9 October 2026 at 8:30 am

Venue: Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena, Shanghai, China

Surface: Outdoor hard

How to watch on TV: UK – Sky Sports Tennis / USA – Tennis Channel

How to watch online: UK – Sky Go / USA – Tennis Channel

Tickets: Visit this link for the latest Francisco Cerundolo vs Roman Safiullin ticket information

Francisco Cerundolo vs Roman Safiullin prediction

Francisco Cerundolo began his China Open campaign with wins over Botic van de Zandschulp and Jakub Mensik to advance to the quarter-finals. He was then beaten by former world number one Daniil Medvedev in straight sets. Cerundolo has won two titles this season, at his home event in Buenos Aires and at Queen’s Club. He also has a decent record at Masters events in 2026, reaching the quarter-finals of the Miami Open back in March.

Cerundolo received a bye in round one and now faces Roman Safiullin. The Russian continued his strong run of results with a comfortable win over Rinky Hijikata. Safiullin, who need to qualify for the main draw, won 6-3 6-3. He advanced to the semi-finals of the Hangzhou Open and also beat Flavio Cobolli at the China Open before a defeat to Andrey Rublev. Overall, he has seven wins from his last nine matches, including qualifying.

The head-to-head is locked at 1-1, with Cerundolo winning their most recent match two years ago in Belgrade. This will be a challenging opener for the Argentine, with Safiullin capable of generating plenty of power from the baseline. 

Francisco Cerundolo vs Roman Safiullin tip: Over 21.5 games