Holger Rune dismisses John McEnroe’s notion of him getting the reputation of a ‘bad boy’

Holger Rune rejects his bad boy reputation as claimed by John McEnroe.

Holger Rune dismisses John McEnroe’s notion of him getting the reputation of a ‘bad boy’

Image Credit: Left - GQ, Right- Instagram Holger Rune

Holger Rune is getting quite a reputation for being a bit of a naughty boy on the court. Recently in a podcast, John McEnroe talked about Holger Rune at length. Though he praised the 20-year-old for his talent, he also added that if the player continues to act in a conflicting manner, he might have a very lonely existence on tournaments.

Recently Holger Rune was talking to Eurosport about his bad reputation and what McEnroe said about his ‘bad reputation’ in the podcast. Eurosport asked Holger whether he considers himself the tennis bad boy. Rune said, “I don’t think so personally.” The Danish young gun said that he believed that there is a lot of hype around his name, and a lot of it is an overreaction. Holger said, “When people try to hype up something everyone is getting hyped about it.”

https://youtu.be/ifqopbd_pDc

Holger Rune said many players stay away from expressing themselves, but he is not one to do that. “Many players don’t show emotions. Maybe the ones who show emotion they call them this but I don’t agree. Of course, everyone has their own opinion and I respect it.”

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John McEnroe himself was known as the tennis bad boy of his generation. He never shied away from expressing his emotions on the court. He was considered very hotheaded when he was the same age as Holger Rune and Bjorn Borg even famously told him, “Listen, this is a game, relax, take it easy.” But John McEnroe also praises the young Dane’s guts to do what he is doing.

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How Holger Rune earned his reputation as ‘bad boy’

Image Credit: Instagram Holger Rune
Image Credit: Instagram Holger Rune

Holger Rune has been cheeky in a few instances. In a match with Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the Madrid Open, while Fokina was in dispute with the chair umpire, the Dane went very close to the mark and seemed to have stepped on it. The Spanish crowd, who were backing homeboy Fokina, lost their cool and booed the young Dane incessantly during the match. Even the chair umpire tried to warn Rune, telling him that what he did was wrong. Whether Rune did the action deliberately or naively, tennis fans were not sure, but it did take away some ‘Fair Play’ points off the Dane.

Holger Rune also had a famous incident with Stan Wawrinka, when Stan had told him to relax at the net and shake hands after the Swiss was defeated by Rune. Later, in a match-up, Stan defeated Rune and at the net, Rune asked Stan, “You don’t have anything to say now?” Since Stan is way more experienced and an older player, this was said to be a disrespectful gesture by Rune. Hope his clay season is free of negative publicity going forward.

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