Holger Rune started the season outside the top 100. The young Dane claimed his first ATP title in Munich in May and reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Roland Garros. Rune reached the edge of the top 30 in late September and began his remarkable streak.
A teenager has won 18 of his last 20 matches, reaching four consecutive ATP indoor finals and coming within a win of breaking into the top 10! Rune is playing his seventh Masters 1000 tournament in Paris. The young Dane cracked the top 20 this week and he has no intention of stopping there!
Holger defeated five opponents at the Paris Masters to advance to his first Masters 1000 final.
Novak Djokovic said good words about Holger Rune.
Rune fended off three match points in the first round against Stan Wawrinka and posted four straight top-10 wins to find himself in the title clash.
If he wins the title against Novak Djokovic, Rune will find himself in the top 10 of the ATP race and will be the first alternative in the ATP finals! At 19 years and six months, Holger is the sixth-youngest Masters 1000 finalist behind Michael Chang, Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, Richard Gasquet and Andrei Medvedev.
The Dane ousted Hubert Hurkacz, Andrey Rublev and Carlos Alcaraz to find himself in the bottom four. Rune’s fourth consecutive top-10 win came against an in-form Felix Auger-Aliassime, beating the Canadian 6-4, 6-2 in an hour and 27 minutes for a career-best finish from him.
Novak Djokovic praised Rune and his incredible run, calling his game impressive and good for tennis. «Hoger is the future of the sport along with Carlos and a few other guys. Still, I hope to get his first Masters 1000 title.
I played him once at the US Open last year, and it was a good four-set battle. Holger has improved a lot and is very fit physically. He is young and there is not much to lose; he can swing through the ball freely.
I hope so in the final. I saw him play the last few days and his game is impressive. He reminds me of myself, with a solid backhand and excellent defense. Holger is competitive, he fights for every point and leaves his heart and legs on the pitch.
It’s good to see that from a young player, and I think it’s very good for our game in general,» Novak Djokovic said.
