Holger Rune’s breakout 2022 season reached new highs on Tuesday at Roland Garros.
#NextGenATP Dane defeated 14th seed Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-1, 7-6(4) for his first Grand Slam win in the first round in Paris. The 19-year-old believes his constant desire to raise his level, even after positive results, has been a key factor in his great form this year.
“Obviously it’s always progress,” Rune said in his post-match press conference. “Even last year I was in the same progress. I’m trying to improve one percent every day, to always do things a little better than the day before. I think this has really helped me a lot.”
Rune entered Paris ranked No. 40 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, a career-high, having won his first ATP Tour title in Munich in early May. He is a far cry from where he was a year ago, when he reached the final of an ATP Challenger Tour event in Lisbon as a player ranked outside the Top 300.
“Obviously I was far from playing tournaments [like Roland Garros] but I always had to believe in myself,” Rune said. “He was still young last year, so it was great for me to play these kinds of tournaments at the time.”
Rune’s progression since that week in Portugal was on full display Tuesday against Shapovalov, a player who defeated Rafael Nadal on clay in Rome just under two weeks ago. While he knew he was up against an established Top 20 opponent, Rune was determined to focus only on what he could control in his first tour-level meeting with the Canadian.
“It was definitely a tough match,” Rune said. “Denis can play incredible tennis. For me, he was just trying to focus on what he could do on the court, trying to hold my serve, trying to take all the opportunities that he had. I did pretty well.
“Of course, maybe I could have closed the third set more easily than I did. I had a lot of chances, but I’m happy that I stayed focused and finished the match in three sets.”
Rune got an early taste of the big stage at the US Open last year, when he qualified to take his place in the main draw at a Grand Slam for the first time. His reward was a first round meeting with World No. 1 Novak Djokovic at Arthur Ashe Stadium. For Rune, the four-set loss was a key part of his learning curve, but he has now reached a point where he wants to turn his potential into concrete results.
“Obviously [playing Novak] It was a great experience for me, so I wouldn’t have replaced that match with any other match at that time,” Rune said. “But it’s nice, you know, not to face the top guys in the first round. I prefer to wait a bit.
“Of course, you can’t say that Denis is an easy draw. He is a great player. Especially in the Grand Slams he shows his best tennis.
“I really tried, like I said, to focus on every point and keep focusing on myself and not do much else.”
With success comes greater recognition, but Rune feels he is getting used to playing against the biggest names on Tour. Instead of causing additional nerves, he sees it as a reward for the hard graft he puts out on the practice court.
“I think it’s nice,” said the Dane. “This is what you work for every day, to be able to play the biggest tournaments. And playing with these types of players, like Denis, is also great for me. It’s an incredible level.
“I am super happy and pleased to be in this position right now. To be able to have chances against these guys. Being able to win my first title in Munich was a big step forward in my career.
“I am very positive and I work hard every day to improve.”
Reference-www.atptour.com