Annual Report Holger Rune: A finish with an exclamation mark; Good
Youngster Holger Rune really turned up the heat this year, especially in the season finish. In any case, the young Dane will be in the spotlight in the coming season.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit:
Dec 05, 2022, 08:04 am
It is usually the most recent events that are best remembered. Accordingly, Holger Rune did a lot, if not everything, right in the 2022 season. Because the Dane played his best tennis in the last few weeks of the season. And that is quite simply of an enormously high level. Novak Djokovic also had to acknowledge that without envy.
However, a differentiated examination of the 19-year-old's season requires a look beyond the indoor hard court season - and things often looked far less rosy for Holger Rune there. Negative highlight: six opening defeats in a row on the ATP tour. Ironically, after entering the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament in Paris for the first time.
Rune and Paris
Paris should be the place that could shape Holger Rune's 2022 season anyway. In addition to the great performance at the Stade Roland Garros, the Dane was crowned champion at ATP Masters 1000 level for the first time a few months later in Paris-Bercy. Rune was already accompanied there by neo-exerciser Patrick Mouratoglou, under whose aegis the 19-year-old seems to have taken the next step.
In addition to winning the title in the hard court classic in Paris-Bercy, Rune was able to enter the list of winners two more times in 2022: In addition to the premiere title in Munich - including a win against Alexander Zverev - the eleventh in the world rankings also succeeded in the far north, specifically in Stockholm. There, too, the Dane caused a stir with a clear victory over a top player - this time against final opponent Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Rune cracks top 10
These successes are also reflected in the world rankings. At the start of the year, Rune was still just outside the top 100 in the ATP classification, but after winning the title in Paris-Bercy, the 19-year-old was even able to crack the top 10 for a short time. The Dane ends the year just outside of this elite round, but Rune can be happy about a good starting position for the Australian Open anyway.
Speaking of the Australian Open: Last year, Rune's first appearance Down Under at the start of the season saw a bitter opening defeat against Soonwoo Kwon. In 2023, of course, a much deeper run should succeed. Because: Holger Rune's goals are high - and the 19-year-old makes no secret of wanting to attack the number one position in the ranking. The Dane was not quite able to achieve this in the 2022 calendar year - also because there were repeated major phases of weakness in between. Overall, the Dane's performance this season deserves a good credit.