Ruud: “I’m not full of confidence”

Ruud hopes that this victory over Carlos Alcaraz heralds great things for Turin

Casper Ruud ( NOR ) reacts during the Rolex Paris Masters at Accor Hotel Arena on October 29, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Federico Pestellini / Panoramic )

Carole Bouchard

November 11, 2024

Casper Ruud could never be accused of a lack of humility. The Norwegian, who pulled off a surprise victory over Carlos Alcaraz in Turin on Monday, was quick to admit what everyone had guessed before he entered the tournament: he arrived in Italy with his head full of doubts.

“This year I’m coming into the tournament with probably the least confidence of all the players in terms of match wins and my recent form, especially on the indoor hard court. Has not been easy to find match wins at all for me.

“I’ve been joking saying that maybe I can save them all for this week! At least I won today,” he smiled.

In the six ATP tournaments Ruud had played since his last-16 finish at the US Open, he had won just one match, in Stockholm.

“I’m not full of confidence. I think that’s been showing in the last weeks. A match like today might be able to change it. We’re at the end of the season, so there aren’t going to be that many more tournaments coming up.

“If I can finish on a strong note here, I’m going to be really happy. You need to bring your A game. That’s kind of been the goal. If you don’t bring your A game against these players, might as well pack your bag and call it the season.”

He was also delighted to see the return of his first serve and the effectiveness of his return against Alcaraz.

“I was serving and returning quite well, which is really important on this surface. The serve has been something that I’ve been struggling a bit with the last weeks. I’m happy it worked better today. My return, I was able to make some really good returns when I really needed to during close returning games and break points, so I was happy with that.”

“Carlos has the potential to hit any shot”

Ruud was also quick to admit that not everything was in his control against Alcaraz and that he was relieved to see the Spaniard on an average day. “With Carlos, it’s like so difficult to play him because you know that he has the potential to hit any shot. Any given point, he can play like a ridiculous point.

“Luckily for me today, a little bit more often than not, he also did some unforced errors. Particularly in the last game I remember when I was serving for it, I won the first point with an ace, next point he hits a beautiful backhand winner, next point is a backhand unforced error, next point I think is a volley winner. So it’s on and off.

“When he’s on, he doesn’t do the unforced errors, he’s almost unplayable, at least in my eyes, because he’s everywhere and you makes you suffer if you don’t hit like basically the line. Luckily for me he’s getting some unforced errors. The game plan was to be as aggressive as I can. But it’s not the nature of my game. I’m hesitating a little bit when I need to be too aggressive. But I’m trying.”

Ruud: I hope Nadal has the retirement he deserves

What Ruud won’t be trying to do, however, is be in Málaga for Rafael Nadal’s final appearance on the professional circuit.

“I won’t go. I’ve played and seen enough tennis during the year, so… I’ll watch it probably on TV, but hopefully on a beach, quiet, just relaxed…Caught me a little bit by surprise that he announced it because I was maybe thinking he would give it one more try during the clay next year. At the same time I know he’s been struggling with a lot of pains and injuries. It just tears you also down mentally. At some point you call it a day.

“I think it will be a nice finish for him. It’s going to be sad and there will be some tears obviously. As a big fan myself, I hope they make it to the final and you get to watch him at least for a few more days. I hope he has the kind of retirement that he deserves.”