Holger Rune Admits he’s “Happy With his Level” After Securing his 100th win on Hard Courts in Cincinnati

Holger Rune will face French qualifier Terence Atmane in the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Open.

Holger Rune Admits he’s “Happy With his Level” After Securing his 100th win on Hard Courts in Cincinnati

Holger Rune (X/Holger Rune fans)

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Holger Rune claimed his 100th hard-court victory after Frances Tiafoe retired from their fourth-round match at the Cincinnati Open. The seventh seed became the fourth player born in the 2000s to reach the milestone of 100 victories, joining the elite group of Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Rune has been one of the promising stars for the future, but he’s yet to fulfill expectations on the court. However, this year, he has been playing a lot better than he did in the past two seasons, winning the Barcelona Open and reaching the final of the Indian Wells Masters before losing to Jack Draper.

Before kicking off his North American hard-court campaign, he trained with tennis legend Andre Agassi in Washington. He took the knowledge of the meeting with the former World No.1 to the Canadian Open, winning two matches before falling to 2024 champion Alexei Popyrin in three sets.

At Cincinnati, he defeated Roman Safiullin and Alex Michelsen before his fourth-round tie against Tiafoe. The Danish star won the first set 6-4 and was leading the second set before the American player began to struggle with a lower back injury. He had received treatment in the first set, but while down 4-6, 1-3, he decided to retire.

Rune then booked his place in the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Open. After the match, he revealed during his interview with Tennis Channel that he’s definitely moving in the right direction in terms of game and performance on the court:

I think I improved a lot today. After the first match I wasn’t quite happy with my level. The second match was better and today I’m even happier. Everything is definitely moving in the direction I want and that’s very important to me. I play more aggressively, but I still control the game. The movements are good, plus of course I do good physical exercises. Everything looks good and I feel great, that’s the most important thing.

Tiafoe’s setback at the Cincinnati Open is troubling as the US Open draws nigh. He has often played his best game at the Grand Slam event, reaching the semi-finals last year before losing to fellow compatriot Taylor Fritz. Also failing to defend his runners-up point last year, he’s set to drop out of the top 15 in the ATP rankings.

Holger Rune reveals how he defeated Frances Tiafoe in the fourth round

Holger Rune began the match against Frances Tiafoe poorly and was down 0-3 in the first set. The 7th seed had to rally back into the match to lead 5-4 before Tiafoe was given a medical timeout. When the American star returned to the court, he was not his former self as he struggled with Rune’s aggressiveness.

Holger Rune
Holger Rune (Image via X/ATP Tour)

During the aforementioned interview, Rune revealed that he didn’t start the match as he expected but gained rhythm in his game after he began to focus on his service game:

Not the most ideal start for me, but I held on. I tried to focus on the little details that I’m working on in my game now, and not on the overall result and the score. So I focused on my serve, my shots, just trying to find a rhythm. And I tried to play calmly, trying to get into the match. I knew it might take a little time, but I just kept fighting every point.

Rune will face French qualifier Terence Atmane in the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Open. Atmane stunned Taylor Fritz in the fourth round just a few days after beating Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca in the third round. However, even if the Frenchman loses to Rune, he’s expected to break into the Top 100 for the first time in his career.

Also Read: Matteo Berrettini’s Ex-Coach Names Two Players Who Can Challenge Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open