“Casper is a lot better than me,” Casper Ruud’s father shines with pride over son’s achievement in popularizing tennis for Norwegian youth

A few hours before UTS Oslo, Christian Ruud was proud of Casper's achievements.

“Casper is a lot better than me,” Casper Ruud’s father shines with pride over son’s achievement in popularizing tennis for Norwegian youth

Christian Ruud and son Casper Ruud (Image via: X)

Hours before UTS Oslo kicks off, Christian Ruud, father and coach of Casper Ruud, revealed how proud he is of his son’s achievement. 

Casper, who won the UTS title last year, has been a huge influence on Norwegian young tennis players.

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Christian Ruud, a former top-50 player, has trained his son to be at the top of his game. Mentoring the 25-year-old to winning 10 ATP titles and runners-up in three Tour events. Casper Ruud sits at 12 in the world ranking, despite his third-round exit at the 2024 Australian Open.

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For the uninitiated, the UTS tournament is the largest-ever tennis event in Norway and one of the biggest in Scandinavia, attracting top European players to the competition. Christian Ruud, in an interview with Tennis Major, revealed his joy in seeing Casper grow up to be the player he dreamed of during his playing days.

It means that tennis is not a big tradition here. We had Sweden with Bjorn Borg, that brought tennis to Scandinavia in a way, but Norway didn’t follow. We were only big in the winter sports, the cross-country skiing and the alpine skiing, so I think we just didn’t have the tradition and we don’t have a lot of facilities to play in.
Christian said.

Despite the UTS tournament being criticized by the ATP organizers because it doesn’t abide by the ATP rules, the likes of Andrey Rublev, Holger Rune, and Casper Ruud have ignored the critics, willing to compete and win what is regarded as the Scandinavian heritage.

Maybe I made the tennis a bit popular in Norway but of course Casper is a lot better than me and he’s brought attention to the tennis in Norway. I think it’s getting more and more popular now every year.
Continuing further, he added

UTS Oslo features 8 Top ATP players

UTS Oslo starts tomorrow (Friday) with eight exciting players set to feature in the three-day jam-packed tournament. The 2024 edition will be the most competitive in the history of the UTS.

Casper Ruud(M), Joachim Bjerke(L) and Christian Ruud(R)
Casper Ruud(M) and Christian Ruud(R)

Featuring the likes of Casper Ruud, Holger Rune, Andrey Rublev, Gael Monfils (La Monf), Alexander Bublik, Dominic Thiem, Alex de Minaur, and Benoit Paire (the Rebel),

All eight players have previously participated, with Them returning after one year away and de Minaur missing the last two editions.

Casper Ruud remains the favorite, Andrey Rublev and Holger Rune to reach the semifinals.

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