“I found the rhythm”: Rune into Final Four at UTS London with Monfils win
Rune has defeated Monfils at the UTS Grand Final in London, booking a Final Four match against Rublev on Sunday
Holger “The Viking” Rune has booked his spot in the Final Four at the UTS Grand Final, defeating veteran Gael “La Monf” Monfils 17-9, 15-14, 9-19, 16-13 in an entertaining match on day two in London.
With the win, Rune sets a first meeting against Andrey “Rublo” Rublev, winner of UTS Frankfurt by Builder.ai, who topped Group A and is on a seven-match winning streak. For The Viking, it’s his first time winning back-to-back UTS matches, and his debut in the Final Four stage.
“I found the rhythm,” Rune declared after his victory over La Monf. “I was two centimeters away from being out of UTS, and now I’m in the semi-finals.”
Fast start by La Monf defused by Rune’s composure
It was a miracle to see La Monf in this match at all, with the Frenchman withdrawing from his clash against Jack “The Power” Draper courtesy of a ankle injury.
There were no concerns about La Monf’s knee early in this match, however, with the 37-year-old blasting a plethora of winners to open the first quarter and race out to a 4-1 lead.
“I want to thank the physio here because he did an absolutely great job,” Monfils said between quarters. “I really wanted to play this match, for myself, but also for you here (the crowd).”
Despite his encouraging start, The Viking went about his work and made it a tight quarter, with the exchange in the balance at 8-8. That is, until Rune began to edge ahead, skillfully playing his UTS card to enter quarter-point at 16-9 and winning on his first opportunity.
“I thought it was a very good level, from both players,” a cheerier Rune shared. “He played some unbelievable shots, but I kept fighting. I’m extremely motivated, I hope you noticed.”
Was this the greatest ever UTS comeback?
Monfils again began quarter two well, ripping winners from both wings.
This time, it was combined with some poor decision making by Rune, who left a ball that dropped in and attempted an underarm serve. The Frenchman capitalised, racing out to a heavy 10-1 lead.
The Viking composed himself and didn’t give up on the quarter, however.
“Honestly, just kept fighting,” Rune explained. “I was solid, he was playing some bombs from the baseline. I had to dig deep and stay mentally tough.”
By winning his own UTS card, Rune closed the gap, and the failure of Monfils to play his own card meant quarter-point came around at 14-11. Incredibly, The Viking saved all three quarter-points to force a deciding point at 14-14, which he won.
Reflecting on the loss of quarter two, Monfils was somewhat circumspect, saying, “I feel like, you know, every time this umpire is on the chair, I am so unlucky.”
La Monf fights, but to no avail
La Monf assured fans that he would compete, and he certainly did that in the third quarter.
The Frenchman took advantage of Rune becoming slightly tighter as victory approached, putting together one of his best quarters to win 19-9 and take the match to a fourth stanza.
“I told you I would fight. I want to compete, I want to give a great battle. Let’s go for the fourth quarter,” declared La Monf after winning the third quarter. “To be honest I just enjoy myself, I always remind myself how lucky I am, how blessed I am to be here playing in front of you guys.”
Fans were even lucky enough to be treated to a steamy mid-match dance by Monfils’ coach, who stole the show for several minutes with a saucy rendition of Magic Mike.
Rune was in no mood to dance however, declaring himself much more ready for the fourth quarter than any kind of dancing. The Dane’s focus paid off, with Rune going on to close out the match clinically, winning the final quarter 16-13.
Next up, The Viking will meet Rublo in an all-top 10 clash at the UTS Grand Final in London.
