Overview
- Báez completed a rain-suspended quarterfinal to beat world No. 8 Ben Shelton 7-5, 6-3, becoming the first Argentine to defeat him and earning his third career Top-10 win.
- Hours later he swept Marcos Giron 6-1, 6-4 to reach his 12th ATP final and second on hard courts, extending his 2026 record to 7-0.
- Most outlets list Jakub Mensik as his opponent in the ASB Classic final, while some reports name Tomás Machac.
- His Auckland run follows earlier wins over Emilio Nava and Jenson Brooksby and builds on United Cup victories against Taylor Fritz, Jaume Munar and Stan Wawrinka.
- After Auckland he is scheduled to travel to Melbourne, where he is slated to face Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the Australian Open first round.