Category: Casper Ruud

Ruud claims first ATP title of season with revenge win over Tsitsipas in Barcelona

April 21, 2024

Casper Ruud defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-5 6-3 to win the Barcelona Open on Sunday afternoon.

Tsitsipas was looking to build on last weekend’s success, when he continued his campaign to get back into the top 10 of the men’s rankings, and crossed that threshold as he won the Monte-Carlo Masters for the third time in his career.

For Ruud, the final offered not just the chance to win his first tournament of the year so far, but to also get revenge on his opponent after Tsitsipas defeated him in Monaco.

Tsitsipas overcame Dusan Lajovic, while Ruud beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry in their respective semi-final ties on Saturday, but Tsitsipas may not have been as fresh. The Greek player needed to come back from a set down, while Ruud enjoyed a straight-sets victory.

Ruud also needed just two sets to claim the title in Spain as he won the first set 7-5, with a far more reliable service game.

He took 80% of his first serve points compared to Tstisipas’s 57%, and four double faults from the losing finalist hinted at struggles with his serve.

The second set was easier for Ruud as he grew into a more dominant position, breaking twice to secure a 6-3 margin to wrap up his win as he prepares for the upcoming clay Grand Slam at Roland-Garros in June.

The Norwegian was far more consistent from the baseline than his opponent, and the difference in quality took him to his 11th career ATP Tour trophy.

Reflecting on what had changed in a week, Ruud said after the match: “Just to kind of [bring] it to him a little bit more than last week.

“In the final in Monte-Carlo I was always on the back foot, too far behind, and he had too much time to control the game.

“It was a bit of a tricky start [here], I got broken right away. So not the best start, but I managed to settle in and broke him back. Clutched up and broke him in the end of the first, which was huge.

“It’s been two long weeks for both of us. It’s obvious that at some point fatigue is going to kick in. I think we were both fit enough to play today, it’s not about that, but winning the first set was huge probably for either of us.”

The defeat ends Tsitsipas’s winning streak of 10 matches.

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Ruud claims first ATP title of season with revenge win over Tsitsipas in Barcelona

April 21, 2024

Casper Ruud defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-5 6-3 to win the Barcelona Open on Sunday afternoon.

Tsitsipas was looking to build on last weekend’s success, when he continued his campaign to get back into the top 10 of the men’s rankings, and crossed that threshold as he won the Monte-Carlo Masters for the third time in his career.

For Ruud, the final offered not just the chance to win his first tournament of the year so far, but to also get revenge on his opponent after Tsitsipas defeated him in Monaco.

Tsitsipas overcame Dusan Lajovic, while Ruud beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry in their respective semi-final ties on Saturday, but Tsitsipas may not have been as fresh. The Greek player needed to come back from a set down, while Ruud enjoyed a straight-sets victory.

Ruud also needed just two sets to claim the title in Spain as he won the first set 7-5, with a far more reliable service game.

He took 80% of his first serve points compared to Tstisipas’s 57%, and four double faults from the losing finalist hinted at struggles with his serve.

The second set was easier for Ruud as he grew into a more dominant position, breaking twice to secure a 6-3 margin to wrap up his win as he prepares for the upcoming clay Grand Slam at Roland-Garros in June.

The Norwegian was far more consistent from the baseline than his opponent, and the difference in quality took him to his 11th career ATP Tour trophy.

Reflecting on what had changed in a week, Ruud said after the match: “Just to kind of [bring] it to him a little bit more than last week.

“In the final in Monte-Carlo I was always on the back foot, too far behind, and he had too much time to control the game.

“It was a bit of a tricky start [here], I got broken right away. So not the best start, but I managed to settle in and broke him back. Clutched up and broke him in the end of the first, which was huge.

“It’s been two long weeks for both of us. It’s obvious that at some point fatigue is going to kick in. I think we were both fit enough to play today, it’s not about that, but winning the first set was huge probably for either of us.”

The defeat ends Tsitsipas’s winning streak of 10 matches.

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Madrid Open: Are Nadal, Djokovic, Alcaraz and Raducanu playing?

April 20, 2024

The Madrid Open will feature the top stars from the ATP and WTA tours.

Carlos Alcaraz has won the men’s title the last two successive years and is bidding to become the first player to win three in a row.

The women’s trophy was won by Aryna Sabalenka as she beat Iga Swiatek in the final.

Who’s playing the Madrid Open this season? Are Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Alcaraz, Swiatek and Sabalenka playing? When is the draw?

When is the Madrid Open?

The WTA main draw at the Madrid Open starts on Tuesday, April 23 and the ATP main draw starts on Wednesday, April 24.

Play starts at 10am UK time every day until midway through the second week. From May 1 to May 3, play begins at midday UK time, and on finals weekend play starts at 2.30pm.

There are also night sessions running from April 26 to May 3 which start at 7pm.

The women’s final will be held on Saturday, May 4 and the men’s final will be on Sunday, May 5.

When is the Madrid Open draw?

The women’s singles draw will be held on Sunday, April 21 at 5pm UK time and the men’s draw will be on Monday, April 22.

Who is playing the Madrid Open?

The Madrid Open was set to be the first clay event that both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have played since the 2022 French Open – until Djokovic pulled out.

Djokovic has not given a reason for his withdrawal, but his absence means world No. 2 Jannik Sinner will be the top seed.

Nadal will be unseeded as he continues his comeback using a protected ranking.

Carlos Alcaraz’s status is unknown after he missed Monte Carlo and Barcelona due to an arm injury.

The world No. 3 is in Madrid ahead of the tournament, but said last week in Barcelona: “My goal is to try and go to the Madrid Open, but at the moment nothing is certain.

“I was given specific recovery times and I’ve respected them, but I haven’t felt good. I don’t want to get ahead of myself.”

Alcaraz hasn’t played since losing in the Miami Open quarter-finals.

Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka will headline the women’s draw.

The pair contested the final in Madrid last year and as the top two seeds could meet again with the trophy on the line.

picture

Aryna Sabalenka won Madrid in 2023

Image credit: Getty Images

Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina will be among those looking to challenge for the title, while two-time champion Simona Halep and former runner-up Caroline Wozniacki have both got wildcards.

This will be Halep’s second tournament since returning to the tour after her doping ban was reduced from four years to nine months.

Naomi Osaka is also on the entry list but Emma Raducanu isn’t currently in the draw.

However, as she is not ranked high enough for entry, unless she gets a late wildcard she looks set to miss Madrid.

Djokovic set for Rome return

This is only the third time since 2015 that Djokovic has not won a title by this stage of the season.

The other two times were in 2022, when he was unable to play in Australia or the United States due to being unvaccinated for Covid-19, and 2018, when he had elbow surgery early in the year.

This season he had only played three tournaments before Monte Carlo, losing to Alex de Minaur at the United Cup, Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semis, and then the upset in the third round at Indian Wells against lucky loser Luca Nardi.

It looks like he is next going to play the Italian Open, which starts on May 8, as he builds up for the French Open, Wimbledon and Olympics.

“I want to reach my peak for Paris – that’s where I want to play my best tennis,” said Djokovic in Monte Carlo.

“Anything else is a bonus, so let’s see what happens.”

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Madrid Open: Are Nadal, Djokovic, Alcaraz and Raducanu playing?

April 20, 2024

The Madrid Open will feature the top stars from the ATP and WTA tours.

Carlos Alcaraz has won the men’s title the last two successive years and is bidding to become the first player to win three in a row.

The women’s trophy was won by Aryna Sabalenka as she beat Iga Swiatek in the final.

Who’s playing the Madrid Open this season? Are Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Alcaraz, Swiatek and Sabalenka playing? When is the draw?

When is the Madrid Open?

The WTA main draw at the Madrid Open starts on Tuesday, April 23 and the ATP main draw starts on Wednesday, April 24.

Play starts at 10am UK time every day until midway through the second week. From May 1 to May 3, play begins at midday UK time, and on finals weekend play starts at 2.30pm.

There are also night sessions running from April 26 to May 3 which start at 7pm.

The women’s final will be held on Saturday, May 4 and the men’s final will be on Sunday, May 5.

When is the Madrid Open draw?

The women’s singles draw will be held on Sunday, April 21 at 5pm UK time and the men’s draw will be on Monday, April 22.

Who is playing the Madrid Open?

The Madrid Open was set to be the first clay event that both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have played since the 2022 French Open – until Djokovic pulled out.

Djokovic has not given a reason for his withdrawal, but his absence means world No. 2 Jannik Sinner will be the top seed.

Nadal will be unseeded as he continues his comeback using a protected ranking.

Carlos Alcaraz’s status is unknown after he missed Monte Carlo and Barcelona due to an arm injury.

The world No. 3 is in Madrid ahead of the tournament, but said last week in Barcelona: “My goal is to try and go to the Madrid Open, but at the moment nothing is certain.

“I was given specific recovery times and I’ve respected them, but I haven’t felt good. I don’t want to get ahead of myself.”

Alcaraz hasn’t played since losing in the Miami Open quarter-finals.

Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka will headline the women’s draw.

The pair contested the final in Madrid last year and as the top two seeds could meet again with the trophy on the line.

picture

Aryna Sabalenka won Madrid in 2023

Image credit: Getty Images

Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina will be among those looking to challenge for the title, while two-time champion Simona Halep and former runner-up Caroline Wozniacki have both got wildcards.

This will be Halep’s second tournament since returning to the tour after her doping ban was reduced from four years to nine months.

Naomi Osaka is also on the entry list but Emma Raducanu isn’t currently in the draw.

However, as she is not ranked high enough for entry, unless she gets a late wildcard she looks set to miss Madrid.

Djokovic set for Rome return

This is only the third time since 2015 that Djokovic has not won a title by this stage of the season.

The other two times were in 2022, when he was unable to play in Australia or the United States due to being unvaccinated for Covid-19, and 2018, when he had elbow surgery early in the year.

This season he had only played three tournaments before Monte Carlo, losing to Alex de Minaur at the United Cup, Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semis, and then the upset in the third round at Indian Wells against lucky loser Luca Nardi.

It looks like he is next going to play the Italian Open, which starts on May 8, as he builds up for the French Open, Wimbledon and Olympics.

“I want to reach my peak for Paris – that’s where I want to play my best tennis,” said Djokovic in Monte Carlo.

“Anything else is a bonus, so let’s see what happens.”

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Ruud eyes ‘biggest title of career’ after beating Etcheverry to reach Barcelona final

April 20, 2024

Casper Ruud booked his place in the Barcelona Open final with a 7-6(6) 6-4 win over Tomas Martin Etcheverry – and then looked forward to the chance to win “the biggest title” of his career.

On Sunday, Ruud will be hoping to end a sobering run which has seen him lose his last seven finals at tournaments above ATP 250 level.

However, he has started the 2024 season in impressive fashion and this victory takes his record to four wins and one defeat from five semi-finals this year – and he could face Stefanos Tsitsipas in a final for the second week running after losing to the Greek in Monte Carlo.

“It’s been fantastic, two weeks has been really good, two finals in a row and it’s gonna be special tomorrow, I’m gonna play for the biggest title of my career,” Ruud told Teledeporte.

“It was a difficult match, level-wise maybe it was my best match here in Barcelona, a very tough opponent, Tomas is playing fantastic tennis.

“I was a bit lucky in the first set… but that’s what you need sometimes, a bit of luck.”

Ruud took a keenly-contested opening set lasting one hour and 16 minutes after prevailing via a tie-break, with Etcheverry proving a very tough nut to crack.

The Argentine was showing few chinks in his armour until Ruud managed to get the opening break at 4-2, but could not follow that up with a hold in an immediate break back for the world No. 30.

Ruud was looking to finally move clear at 6-5, but let two set points slip to give Etcheverry a crucial hold at 6-6 before his resistance was ended.

The world No. 6 drew blood after set point number four in a gruelling opener, and followed that up with an early break in the second to seize the advantage.

But this topsy-turvy set looked to be following a familiar pattern to the first, as Etcheverry broke back again at 1-1.

However, the contest decisively swung in Ruud’s favour when he emphatically broke Etcheverry to love at 3-2.

From there onwards, the Norwegian wrapped up the match with relative comfort, taking it on his second match point.

He will now face the winner from the semi-final between Tsitsipas and Dusan Lajovic in Sunday’s final, with a potential chance to exact quick revenge on the Greek.

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Tsitsipas: Third Monte-Carlo Masters win is ‘even more special’ than first or second

April 14, 2024

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Tsitsipas: Third Monte-Carlo Masters win is ‘even more special’ than first or second

April 14, 2024

TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Investec Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.

Tsitsipas beats Ruud to seal third Monte-Carlo Masters title

April 14, 2024

Stefanos Tsitsipas produced a statement return to form as he defeated Casper Ruud in straight sets to lift the Monte-Carlo Masters title for the third time in a sun-drenched battle of the clay-court specialists.

The Greek carried on his impressive run in the Principality this week to outgun his Norwegian opponent and triumph 6-1 6-4 in one hour and 36 minutes.

It sees Tsitsipas add to the back-to-back titles he won at this tournament from 2021-22 and also means he joins Rafael Nadal (11), Bjorn Borg (3), Thomas Muster (3) and Ilie Nastase (3) as the only players to have claimed 3+ Monte-Carlo titles in the Open Era.

The current world No. 12 will now rise back into the top 10 in the ATP rankings on Monday following an eight-week absence thanks to a landmark 100th tournament level win on the dirt.

In a clash between two expert exponents of clay-court tennis, it was perhaps fitting that the first 1000 tournament of the European swing pitted the two men to have chalked up the most victories on the surface on the ATP Tour since 2020 against each other.

It was Tsitsipas who settled the quicker at a venue where his imperious 19-3 career record imbued clear confidence. Indeed, he broke on his third opportunity from 0-40 with a crisp cross-court forehand before hitting clutch mode to fend off three break back points and clinch a 3-1 lead from deuce.

Ruud, who had shown great character and resilience to beat world No.1 Novak Djokovic in the last four, was strangely out of sorts and a simple crosscourt volley wide was followed by two surprising errors off his trademark forehand to allow the Greek to snare the double break.

The errors continued to flow off the Norwegian’s racquet and he glanced anxiously at his team before coughing up his serve for a third time, double-faulting on a second set point to drop a one-sided opener in just 36 minutes.

Ruud, who was looking to end his four-match losing streak in finals (2023 Roland-Garros, 2023 Bastad, 2024 Los Cabos and 2024 Acapulco) desperately needed a strong start to the second set, but could not take advantage of some early break point opportunities as Tsitispas’s big first serve and venomous forehand continued to fire.

The Greek’s majestic level appeared to dip briefly, but the Norwegian continued to let him off the hook and Tsitsipas maintained the scoreboard advantage with the help of some surprise serve and volley tactics.

The alarm bells were ringing for Ruud at 3-2 down as he allowed a 40-15 lead to slip away, but he scrubbed out a break point with a delicious stun drop volley before grinding out the hold from deuce.

It almost earned him a reward on the return in an epic seventh game but despite earning three more break points from a 40-0 deficit, Tsitsipas again delivered in the big moments, knifing away a wonderful volley to make it eight out of eight break points saved.

It was this resistance coupled with a tally of 23 winners that paved the way for Tsitsipas to break again on his first match point and claim his first winner’s trophy since Los Cabos last year and the 11th ATP title of his career.

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Tsitsipas beats Ruud to seal third Monte-Carlo Masters title

April 14, 2024

Stefanos Tsitsipas produced a statement return to form as he defeated Casper Ruud in straight sets to lift the Monte-Carlo Masters title for the third time in a sun-drenched battle of the clay-court specialists.

The Greek carried on his impressive run in the Principality this week to outgun his Norwegian opponent and triumph 6-1 6-4 in one hour and 36 minutes.

It sees Tsitsipas add to the back-to-back titles he won at this tournament from 2021-22 and also means he joins Rafael Nadal (11), Bjorn Borg (3), Thomas Muster (3) and Ilie Nastase (3) as the only players to have claimed 3+ Monte-Carlo titles in the Open Era.

The current world No. 12 will now rise back into the top 10 in the ATP rankings on Monday following an eight-week absence thanks to a landmark 100th tournament level win on the dirt.

In a clash between two expert exponents of clay-court tennis, it was perhaps fitting that the first 1000 tournament of the European swing pitted the two men to have chalked up the most victories on the surface on the ATP Tour since 2020 against each other.

It was Tsitsipas who settled the quicker at a venue where his imperious 19-3 career record imbued clear confidence. Indeed, he broke on his third opportunity from 0-40 with a crisp cross-court forehand before hitting clutch mode to fend off three break back points and clinch a 3-1 lead from deuce.

Ruud, who had shown great character and resilience to beat world No.1 Novak Djokovic in the last four, was strangely out of sorts and a simple crosscourt volley wide was followed by two surprising errors off his trademark forehand to allow the Greek to snare the double break.

The errors continued to flow off the Norwegian’s racquet and he glanced anxiously at his team before coughing up his serve for a third time, double-faulting on a second set point to drop a one-sided opener in just 36 minutes.

Ruud, who was looking to end his four-match losing streak in finals (2023 Roland-Garros, 2023 Bastad, 2024 Los Cabos and 2024 Acapulco) desperately needed a strong start to the second set, but could not take advantage of some early break point opportunities as Tsitispas’s big first serve and venomous forehand continued to fire.

The Greek’s majestic level appeared to dip briefly, but the Norwegian continued to let him off the hook and Tsitsipas maintained the scoreboard advantage with the help of some surprise serve and volley tactics.

The alarm bells were ringing for Ruud at 3-2 down as he allowed a 40-15 lead to slip away, but he scrubbed out a break point with a delicious stun drop volley before grinding out the hold from deuce.

It almost earned him a reward on the return in an epic seventh game but despite earning three more break points from a 40-0 deficit, Tsitsipas again delivered in the big moments, knifing away a wonderful volley to make it eight out of eight break points saved.

It was this resistance coupled with a tally of 23 winners that paved the way for Tsitsipas to break again on his first match point and claim his first winner’s trophy since Los Cabos last year and the 11th ATP title of his career.

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‘Not a great season’ – Djokovic reacts to Monte Carlo loss, as Ruud says ‘he’s human’

April 13, 2024
Novak Djokovic tasted defeat yet again in 2024, losing in the Monte Carlo semi-finals to Casper Ruud to leave the world No. 1 labelling his year so far as “not a great season at all”.

It is an unusual position for the Serbian great to find himself in, such is the “high standard” he sets for himself – with Ruud managing to beat Djokovic for the first time in six attempts.

Djokovic lost to Alex de Minaur in the United Cup – his chosen Australian Open warm-up event – and to Jannik Sinner in Melbourne, before being beaten by Luca Nardi in Indian Wells. Add in the defeat to Ruud, and it is clear this season is not shaping up how Djokovic might have hoped.

Mitigating circumstances do exist – this was Djokovic’s first tournament of the year on clay, while Ruud has already played in Estoril and thus was perhaps better prepared for the conditions in Monaco. Those conditions varied hugely too, with rain and unseasonably cooler weather for the players to contend with over the first few days, before the sun came out and conditions quickened.

“I’m used to really high standard in terms of expectations of the results, so not having a title is, maybe comparing to the last 15 years, not a great season at all,” Djokovic said.

“But I had semis of Australia, semis here. I only played three tournaments this year, so of course, you know, it’s normal to expect that you have some seasons where you don’t start well, and this is the one.

“Hopefully, yeah, I can pick up, in terms of results, I can build from here, because, you know, I played some good tennis. Hopefully in the next tournaments I’ll be able to play even better.”

This is not Djokovic’s worst start to a season – far from it. In 2018 he did not win a title until Wimbledon and did not make a single final on the hard or clay courts in the opening part of the season.

But given how much is expected of the 24-time major winner, his lacklustre start to the campaign has been noted by many, not least the way he lost in Monte Carlo – with a double fault on match point.

“Of course, I’m disappointed, you know, to lose a match like this,” Djokovic said of his semi-final defeat.

“I had my chances, but yeah, last game was not great. Unforced errors and just he was solid I think until the last shot and deserved to win. My game was kind of up and down.

“I mean, the positive thing is that I kind of managed to come back after losing the first set and really find the strength in the game. So, there are positives to take away from this tournament, for sure, but of course disappointed with the loss.”

As for Ruud, he is a proven performer on the dirt courts so to see him make his first final in Monaco is not unexpected, but it did surprise a few given his prior record against Djokovic.

“Obviously Novak is Novak,” Ruud said. “He’s human. Sometimes he doesn’t seem like it, but he is like everyone else.

“I think what really motivated me and helped me a bit today was maybe that I thought about, you know, he lost a match in Indian Wells to Luca Nardi, and he showed there that he’s also vulnerable sometimes. Not many times in a year, but a few days here and there he’s possible to beat.

“If you see that someone has done really well in the beginning of the year, it’s tough to play them, because you’re expecting, wow, this guy is almost impossible to beat. But if you see that many or other players have beaten him before, you believe a bit more in yourself also.”

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Casper Ruud, Monte Carlo 2024

Image credit: Getty Images

With the rise of Sinner, the hype surrounding Carlos Alcaraz, Holger Rune playing exciting tennis and Grigor Dimitrov rolling back the years, there is plenty of talent on show on the men’s tour at the moment, but Ruud maintains Djokovic sets the standard.

Ruud said: “In my eyes, [Djokovic is] of the all-time players to try to beat. Today I was able to do it. Something I can remember for the rest of my life and tell hopefully my kids in the future and my grandkids when I’m getting old that, you know, I beat Novak one time at least.

“No one knows how long he plans to play for, but obviously he’s getting older, but he’s still physically in good shape and playing fantastic tennis. But it’s always fun to play against him, because, you know, it’s one of the toughest challenges in our sport.”

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