“My personal favorite has always been Rafa!” Casper Ruud backs Rafael Nadal to win the 2022 Australian Open
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Australian Open 2022
The 23-year-old Norwegian tennis player, Casper Ruud roots for his idol Rafael Nadal in claiming the record for being the first among the big three to get 21 grand slams.
Casper Ruud holds the World Rank No. 8 in Men’s Singles tennis currently. The young player has risen up to his current position after turning pro in the year 2015. In the 7 years of his professional career, 2021 was when he truly rose up winning five ATP titles and getting to two semi-finals of ATP master events. In the span of a year, he went from being in the top 25 in the world to the top 10.
‘From aspiring to achieving’ – Ruud
“He’s inspiring, Very competitive, it doesn’t matter if it’s tennis or golf,” says the young Norwegian player. Looking up to the Spanish player, Casper also watched and learned from him, always looking to take his own game to a higher level. “I don’t mind being a clay court player. Nadal is the perfect example.” After winning back-to-back tournaments, it’s evident that Casper is also strong in clay court just like his idol as all of his five ATP titles are on clay along with his two major finals.
Casper adds, “That’s like the first memory I even have myself of watching TV and thinking myself when I was six, seven years old that I would like to be on the screen myself, so in a way, he’s the one who started my motivation for tennis so it’s tough for me not to say him”. To make himself better and to gain more experience, in the year 2018, he even joined the Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor. This gave him multiple opportunities to play alongside the 20 grand slam winner Rafael Nadal. He even revealed how playing with the Spanish player motivated and uplifted his confidence.
“And he has two personalities, one on the court where he is fierce, tough and plays with great intensity; and another outside, where he is a very normal guy and nice,” Casper claims that Nadal even though is so different on court, in the academy he greets everyone and others also treat him normally, which Nadal might like. Casper looks up to Nadal in many ways. He swore to never break a racket on the court just like the 35-year-old player.
One of Casper’s coaches in the academy, Pedro Clar revealed how much the Spanish player has influenced Casper’s career. had mentioned that the young Norwegian is very critical about his game, is always willing to hear any critics, and is open to change. It’s because Casper has followed Nadal so much that he supports the Spanish in being the first among the big three to win 21 grand slams.
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Varsha Srikumar
(135 Articles Published)