Since guiding Poland to a remarkable United Cup triumph in January 2026, World No. 63 Hubert Hurkacz‘s form has hit a wall. The Pole went on to suffer six consecutive first-round exits, following which Hurkacz decided to part ways with coach Nicolas Massu in March, bringing an end to a partnership that began in November of 2024. And after almost a month of not appointing anyone, Hurkacz has finally decided to enter the Madrid Open with a new coach.

The former World No. 6 has partnered with Gilles Cervara, who had previously worked with Daniil Medvedev for eight years before eventually splitting in August of 2025. He had helped the Russian in becoming World No. 1 and winning 20 ATP titles. Despite beginning his professional coaching career in 2007, it was Cervara’s long stint with Medvedev that made him a well-renowned coach. He was even named ATP Coach of the Year in 2019.

After parting ways with Medvedev, Cervara decided to join forces with 20-year-old American star Nishesh Basavareddy in early December. The youngster had a promising start to the year and had a 10-5 win-loss record coming into April.

However, Cervara surprisingly decided to part ways with Basavareddy despite the solid results. He didn’t give any particular reason behind his decision, but ensured that Basavareddy’s performances had nothing to do with it.

“Nishesh, it is not with pleasure that I have decided to end my mission with you. There is nothing ‘wrong’ or ‘against you’, it is simply an important factor for me that explains this decision. Nonetheless, I sincerely wish you continued growth and improvement for the best in your young career, and I am sure you will succeed,” Cervara had said in a statement.

After leaving the Americans’ side, Cervara was seen leading a practice session with Hurkacz ahead of the Madrid Open at the Caja Magica. Fans believed that a new high-profile player-coach partnership was set to be unveiled at the Spanish capital, and their suspicions were proven to be true.

Though both Hurkacz and Cervara are yet to give a public statement on the matter, it has already been confirmed that the two have started a new partnership together. Cervara is someone who helped build Daniil Medvedev into a Grand Slam winner, and that is perhaps an avenue Hurkacz will need a major push in during the course of the new partnership.

And it might have already started paying off dividends as Hurkacz’s seven-match losing streak came to an end in the opening round of the Madrid Masters. He was drawn against Jaime Faria and recorded a convincing 6-3, 6-3 victory to advance into the Round of 64.

However, the 29-year-old slipped off the momentum as he came up short against Lorenzo Musetti in the following round.

Hubert Hurkacz falls to Lorenzo Musetti in straight sets at Madrid Masters

The Italian racked up his first Masters 1000 victory of the season by defeating Hurkacz 6-4, 7-6 in an hour and 51 minutes. Musetti had to fight hard for this result as the former World No. 6 almost took the match into the third set. He had two set points under his belt at one stage but failed to capitalize.

Musetti took full advantage of this and forced the set into a tiebreaker. He kept his composure and won it 7-4 to qualify for the R32, where he will be facing Tallon Griekspoor.

On the other hand, it proved to be another disappointing campaign for Hurkacz, who just can’t seem to make it past the first two rounds at the moment. He will be aiming to pick up his form under Cervara at the Rome Masters, or else he may end up suffering a significant drop in the rankings.

This is because Hurkacz had made it to the quarterfinals at the Italian capital last year and will have a massive number of points on the line. An exit in the opening rounds could see him lose multiple places in the rankings.

Will Hurkacz be able to rediscover his form under Cervara’s guidance, or will he go on to face another early elimination in Rome?