Casper Ruud chooses his ultimate goal between Grand Slam title and World No.1 ranking
Casper Ruud has played three Grand Slam finals in his career, but has ended up on the losing side in all three occasions.
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Casper Ruud (Image via X)
Norwegian tennis star Casper Ruud has revealed his ultimate goal between the World No. 1 ranking and a Grand Slam title. The three-time Grand Slam finalist chose a Grand Slam title in this debate.
In an interview, Ruud explained that being No. 1 in the world isn’t worth much without a Grand Slam title. He also shared that he came very close to becoming World No. 1 at the US Open in 2022, if Carlos Alcaraz had lost to Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals.
I would say that winning a Grand Slam is, for me, the biggest goal, the biggest dream. In 2022, I almost became world number one. You know, if you think about it, I think if Carlos Alcaraz had lost to Sinner at the US Open with a match point against him, and I had reached the semi-finals or the final, I would have become world number one, but I would feel bad, in a way, to be world number one without having won a Grand Slam tournament.
Casper Ruud in an interview with We are Tennis
Ruud has reached three Grand Slam finals in his career. Two of those finals were against Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros. Unfortunately, against these two legends, Ruud was unable to find a way to win, losing in straight sets.
So I think the Grand Slams are the most important and I would like them to come first. But of course, when I think about it afterwards, I wouldn’t hate having been world number one either, but I mean for me, the Grand Slam is the ultimate goal, the dream, and I’m happy that I haven’t won it yet.
Casper Ruud added
However, in the 2022 US Open final, Ruud had a strong chance against Alcaraz, who was playing in his first Grand Slam final. Ruud lost in four sets to the Spaniard, who eventually ended the season as World No. 1.
Casper Ruud loses in the opening round of Metz
Casper Ruud has earned praise for not withdrawing from the ATP 250 tournament in Metz this week. He entered the event thinking he needed a few more points to secure a spot in the ATP Finals. However, Novak Djokovic‘s withdrawal automatically gave him a place in Turin, but Ruud chose not to pull out and decided to play his match against Benjamin Bonzi.
The match ended with a straight-set victory for Bonzi, 6-4, 6-4. With that loss, Ruud can now travel to Turin with a clear focus, ready to prepare for the ATP Finals, his final tournament of the year.
Ruud seemed a bit demotivated during the match, though he had been motivated before Djokovic’s withdrawal. His main goal was to conserve energy for the season-ending Finals, where he will compete for the second time after debuting in 2022.
The Norwegian’s best results this season came during the clay court events. He won his first ATP 500 title at the Barcelona Open and reached his first Masters 1000 final in Monte Carlo. However, he couldn’t match his previous performances at the French Open and was eliminated in the semifinals this year.
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Fahad Hamid
(625 Articles Published)