The Danish Holger Rune, number 7 in the world, qualified this Saturday to the final of the Masters 1000 in Rome by beating the Norwegian Casper Ruud (No. 4 and current runner-up at Roland Garros) in three sets, 6-7 (2), 6-4 and 6-2.
The 20-year-old Dane, who had lost all four of his previous meetings to Ruud, will play for the title on Sunday against the winner of the second semi-final that Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas (5th ATP) and Russia's Daniil Medvedev (3rd) were tied 4-4 until rain suspended it.
Eight days before the start of Roland Garros, Rune confirms his brilliant rise, after eliminating in the quarterfinals the still world number, the Serbian Novak Djokovic, and together with the Spanish Carlos Alcaraz seems called to be the dominator of the circuit in the next decade.
Thus, he will play on Sunday his third final in four tournaments on brick dust that he has played this season, after the Masters 1000 of Monte Carlo (defeat against the Russian Andrey Rublev) and the ATP 250 tournament in Munich, which he won the Dutchman Van de Zandschulp, when he added the fourth title in his career.
Under a fine rain, Ruud knew how to control the fieriness of Rune during a set and a half, in which he did not concede a single ball of 'break' thanks to a very effective service and his speed of legs, which made him return the numerous left that his rival made him.
Ruud seemed to have a foot and a half in the final when he won the second set 4-2, having taken the first in the tie break, but at that point Rune increased his level of play, coinciding with the moment in which he requested medical assistance for problems in his right shoulder.
"At that moment I told myself that I had nothing to lose, that it was probably my last set here, that I had to play with freedom and so I did," Run admitted after the match.
The Dane took advantage of his first ball of 'break' to place 4-4 and there began a new match in which Rune, much more aggressive, only let Ruud make two games until the end, who said goodbye to Rome in the semifinals, as he did in 2020 and 2022.
With information from AFP
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