Jacquet spoils Rune’s comeback on the ATP Tour in Tokyo

Holger Rune’s return to the ATP Tour after 11 months out lasted one match. Frenchman Kyrian Jacquet beat the Dane 6-3, 6-1 on Thursday to move into the last 16 of the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships, without facing a single break point.

His comeback had begun two weeks earlier in the Davis Cup, in Denmark’s World Group I tie against Bulgaria from 18-20 September. He beat Iliyan Radulov 6-3, 6-3 on his return, then beat Grigor Dimitrov 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) to win the fourth point and send his country into next year’s Qualifiers.

Rune came to Tokyo with good memories too: he reached the semifinals there in 2024 and holds a 5-2 record at the event.

But in the first meeting between the two players, Jacquet was in control from start to finish. The 25-year-old landed only 43 percent of his first serves, yet he won all 19 points that followed one. Rune did not win a single point on his opponent’s first serve, and he never earned a break point all match.

Jacquet held all eight of his service games and broke four times in six attempts. He took the opening set 6-3 and then ran away with the second, giving up just one game. Rune saved one match point before the Frenchman closed it out. Overall, Jacquet won 52 of the 84 points played.

Jacquet, now a Top 100 player at No. 86, was making his Tokyo debut and entered the main draw on a special exemption. The win continues a strong stretch for the Frenchman, who will next face Italian Luciano Darderi, ranked No. 19, in the second round.

For Rune, the result matters less than the return itself. After almost a year away, his road back to the top begins.