Five things to know about Holger Rune
Read up on all you should know about Holger Rune as continues to makes waves on the ATP tour.
The 19-year-old is fighting hard in 2022 as he makes his way up the men’s ladder.
Here, Tennishead dives into fives things you should know about Scandinavian ace.
1) Background
Holger Vitus Nødskov Rune was born in Gentofte, Denmark on 29th April 2003.
He took up tennis at the age of six, following his sister into the sport.
2) Junior credentials
Holger Rune has not appeared as if from nowhere.
He had a strong junior career, even achieving the number one spot on the rankings in 2019.
He won the boys’ singles at the 2019 French Open, when Lorenzo Musetti was the top seed.
During the tournament he dropped just one set, in the final, 7-6, to American Toby Alex Kodat.
2) Teen trailblazer
Ahead of his Slam debut at last year’s US Open, Holger Rune played back-to-back challenger events in San Marino and Verona, Italy.
He won both tournaments, becoming the fourth teenager to achieve the feat since 2010. The other three were Nick Kyrgios, Taylor Fritz, and fellow Next Gen prospect Carlos Alcaraz.
3) An awesome Slam debut
After coming through qualifying to make the main draw of the 2021 US Open, Holger Rune faced none other than world number one Novak Djokovic in his first ever main draw Slam match.
In front of a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd, Rune played impressively to take a set against the Calendar Slam-chasing Djokovic, the Serb eventually winning 6-1, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 6-1 after the Dane faded with cramp.
Though the teenager certainly collapsed physically late on, he later described the overall experience as follows: “The best I’ve ever felt in my life.”
4) Next Gen Finals flair
As the 2021 season came to a close, a then 18-year-old Rune was 10th in the ATP Race to Milan rankings, the points race to qualify for the Next Gen ATP Finals.
After Jannik Sinner, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Jenson Brooksby opted not to play, Rune made the cut while ranked 109th in the world and as the second youngest competitor behind Carlos Alcaraz.
The Dane won one of three round robin matches, defeating Juan Manuel Cerundolo but losing to Brandon Nakashima and eventual champion Alcaraz.
5) A BIG win
Holger Rune began 2022 ranked just outside the ATP top 100 at 103rd before quickly breaking into it just before the Australian Open.
Soon after claiming his best Masters 1000 result to date by reaching the last 32 in Monte Carlo, the teen star is up to a career-high 70th in the rankings.
After downing fellow Next Gen star Jiri Lehecka in Munich, he then faced top seed and home favourite Alexander Zverev.
However, despite their rankings disparity, Rune put on a show to defeat the world number three 6-3, 6-2.
With the result Rune claimed his first career victory over a top five opponent and secured a third career ATP tour level quarter-final.
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