The Argentine Francisco Cerundolo arrived at the HSBC Championship with renewed confidence after a disappointing clay-court campaign. The 27-year-old carried strong momentum into Queen’s Club QF against Arthur Fery following back-to-back wins against Aleksandar Kovacevic and Jenson Brooksby. But another win against the Briton came at a painful cost, as one fearless charge to the net left the former world No. 18 paying a heavy price.

Early in the 2nd set of the match, Fery fired a ball from close range at the net that struck Francisco Cerundolo directly in the throat. The painful blow knocked the Argentine international off his feet and briefly halted his momentum.

Cerundolo stayed on the ground at the Andy Murray Arena for a few moments after the impact, leaving the crowd worried about his condition. Fortunately, he quickly reassured everyone by getting back on his feet and deciding to continue the match in some time.

Meanwhile, the 23-year-old British ace, who was simply trying to finish the point, immediately walked over and apologized to his opponent following the frightening incident.

The match, however, soon swung in the local’s favor. After the opening set, the 140th in the world stormed back from 3-1 down by winning 7 straight games to level the contest in the second and then take a 2-0 lead in the deciding set.

However, Cerundolo managed to regain his composure just when it mattered most. As Fery began to run out of energy in the later stages of the match, the Argentine fought back to seal a 7-6 (7-1), 3-6, 6-4 victory.

After the match, reflecting on the incident, Cerundolo added, “Wow man, I got a shot here in my throat, and I couldn’t breathe. But after one or two games it went away. I got lucky.”

Fery’s defeat meant there were no local British players left in the singles draw at the ATP 500 event. Cerundolo, on the other hand, advanced to face American Brandon Nakashima, who had earlier upset top seed Australian ace Alex de Minaur. 

And while the accidental collision caused major concern on court yesterday, it also served as another reminder that similar frightening incidents have occurred in tennis before.

Franco Agamenone endures a painful blow to the face against Chris Rodesch

Back in April this year at the Grand Prix Open Comunidad de Madrid, 33-year-old Franco Agamenone faced Luxembourgish Chris Rodesch in a match that suddenly took a painful turn on the court.

In the opening set, the two players were locked in a long exchange from the baseline. Agamenone, however, decided to move forward and attack the net. He hoped to break the 24-year-old opponent’s rhythm with an aggressive approach. Instead, the tactic ended in a painful accident.

Rodesch struck the ball firmly, and it flew straight into Agamenone’s face while he was standing at the net. The impact was immediate and clearly visible.

Agamenone instantly grabbed his face and quickly walked toward his bench. A physio was called immediately onto the court as concern spread among everyone watching at the stadium.

Another similar incident happened in the doubles game when Luciano Darderi and Stefanos Tsitsipas teamed up against Frenchman Manuel Guinard and Argentina’s Guido Andreozzi at the Madrid Open this year.

Trailing in the second set after already winning the opener, the Greek and Darderi were involved in another fast-paced rally. The exchanges quickly became faster as the Greek ace, Darderi, and Guinard traded several sharp shots. 

Suddenly, Tsitsipas unleashed a powerful backhand that accidentally struck Guinard directly in the face, leaving everyone in the stadium stunned by the impact.

Although none of these incidents were intentional on anyone’s end, they sparked major concern among players and fans alike. With another frightening accident now occurring during the Queen’s Club tournament, questions are once again being raised about the risks players face during fast-paced net exchanges.