Unlikely Finalists Griekspoor, Struff Set Brussels Title Showdown

Tallon Griekspoor
Tallon Griekspoor (photo: Belga – BNP Paribas Fortis European Open)

BRUSSELS/WASHINGTON, October 25, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)

First Tallon Griekspoor and later Jan-Lennard Struff earned what arguably could be their biggest wins of the season, respectively, at the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open Saturday. It set up an unlikely final between unseeded players, who will determine the outcome of the 11th edition of the ATP 250 hard-court indoor event.

Both Griekspoor from the Netherlands and Struff of Germany fought back from the brink of sure defeat against their seeded opponents to prevail and advance to Sunday’s title match. As a bonus, each made some history, too.

While neither player was expected to win their semifinal matches, both Griekspoor and Struff fought from first ball to last ball and turned what should have been painful losses into satisfying three-set victories.

In the first semifinal, the 60th-ranked Griekspoor rallied to upset World No. 21 and third seed Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4), in two hours and six minutes to reach his seventh ATP Tour final – and second one this season after Dubai in February. He became the first Dutchman to reach an ATP Tour final on an indoor hard court since Robin Haase at Vienna in 2013.

Then, in the second semifinal, No. 58 Struff fought past World No. 10 and top seed Arthur Fils of France, 6-4, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (5), in two hours and 18 minutes for his third Top 10 victory of 2026 and to reach his fifth career ATP Tour final – and first one on a hard court.

It’s also Struff’s first title match since winning his sole ATP Tour title at Munich at 2024. He’s also the first German finalist in European Open tournament history. 

Guess what? Sometimes, good stuff happens to good people who keep showing up week after week on the ATP Tour to compete and earn a living – and keep putting in the time and work.

“I want to thank the crowd for the support. It was an unreal match,” Struff said during his on-court interview that followed his 20th victory of the season and dropped Fils to 36-14. “I felt I played a very, very good first set, he won the second set which was very close. I managed to come back from a break down twice in the third set. I am just very happy to get the win.”

At a set each, after Struff dropped the second set in closely-decided tiebreaker, the German No. 2 trailed 4-5 with Fils serving for the match and a title berth. However, Struff broke Fils’s serve to level the decider at 5-all. Then, he played solidly throughout the tie-break to triumph.

By the conclusion, Struff struck 43 winners – including 15 aces – and overcame 37 unforced errors. He won 82 percent (58 of 71) of his first-serve points, saved four of six break points he faced from Fils and broke his opponent three times in 10 opportunities. Throughout, Struff used his powerful groundstrokes to dictate play against Fils.

Struff outpointed Fils, who never quite found his rhythm, 115-111. By comparison, Fils finished with 17 aces and 42 overall winners but also made 31 unforced errors. 

“It has been a good year for me. I’m playing at a high level and always try to push myself to the limit,” Struff said. “Now I need to recover, but I’m confident I’ll be in the best possible shape for Sunday’s final.”

Now, only Griekspoor stands between Struff and his first title victory of 2026. His triumph over Fils improved his career win-loss record at the European Open to 10-5.

Earlier, Griekspoor rallied from a set down after being dominated by Cerundolo in the early going. He began to play more confidently and his levels rose while Cerundolo’s dipped. Griekspoor broke Cerundolo to go ahead 5-3 and leveled the semifinal by consolidating matters in his next service game. It was the first set Cerundolo had lost in the tournament and it was on to a decider, which went the 30-year-old Dutchman’s way.

Griekspoor hit 24 winners, including nine aces, and made 24 unforced errors. He won 73 percent (44 of 60) of his first-serve points, saved two of five break points and broke Cerundolo’s serve twice in four tries. Cerundolo outpointed Griekspoor 89-88.

“Reaching a final is always super sweet,” Griekspoor said during his on-court interview after improving his win-loss record this season to 17-21. “It was a tough match. I was down by a break deep in the third set but I found my best tennis of the day when I needed it the most. I’m very happy and proud of myself.”

Griekspoor will take a 3-0 career head-to-head against Struff into the championship final. Each has been on a hard-court surface. So, Sunday’s meeting between Struff, who at 36 is the oldest player in the draw, and Griekspoor seems like a natural that was meant to happen.

Around the Brussels Expo

No. 4 seeds Sadio Doumbia of France and Bart Stevens of the Netherlands defeated Nicolas Barrientos of Colombia and David Pel of the Netherlands, 7-5, 6-4, in an hour and 24 minutes on Centre Court Saturday afternoon to earn a berth in Sunday’s doubles final.

Doubmia and Stevens converted three of 11 break points and outpointed their opponents 64-53. 

Awaiting Doumbia and Stevens (3-0 as a team), who have not dropped a set this week, are Germany’s Constantin Frantzen and Robert Galloway of the United States, who have been the beneficiaries of good fortune this week – back-to-back walkover wins.

First, on Thursday, Frantzen and Galloway advanced over Raphael Collignon and David Goffin of Belgium without playing a point. Then, by Friday evening, they learned that their Saturday semifinal against Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina and Alex Michelsen of the United States had been scratched.

Frantzen and Galloway, who have had to play just one match this week, have been idle since winning their first-round match on Monday. This is their first ATP Tour event together as a team.

Saturday’s European Open results

Sunday’s European Open order of play

By the numbers

Despite his semifinal loss Saturday evening, World No. 10 Arthur Fils remains in contention to qualify for next month’s Nitto ATP Finals in Turin for the first time in his career. The 21-year-old from France is currently in seventh place in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. He is 266 points ahead of ninth-place Rafael Jodar of Spain, who is effective in the final qualification spot for the eight-player event. Second place Jannik Sinner is injured and out for the season and will not compete.

Fils is entered to play in the upcoming ATP 500 Swiss Indoors in Basel, Switzerland. Seeded second, Fils is scheduled to face Hubert Hurkacz of Poland in his first-round match.

“Quotable …”

“Reaching a final is always something special, especially after a match like this. I played my best tennis when it mattered most. In the end, it became a real mental battle. My slice is an important weapon on this surface, and it has helped me a lot throughout the tournament. I’m hoping for plenty of support [Sunday], from both the Dutch and Belgian fans.”

– Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands, during his post-match interview, after becoming the first Dutch finalist in the history of the European Open.

 

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