UTS Grand Final: Changes needed from Rune if “The Viking” is to survive day two
Having been swept 3-0 in his only match of the day, here’s what Rune needs to change heading into day two of the UTS Grand Final in London
Holger “The Viking” Rune first made his UTS debut as a 17-year-old, filling in for Matteo Berrettini as a late replacement in 2020. The teenager wasn’t expected to win then, and he didn’t, going down to Corentin Moutet.
Now, Rune is an established member of the top 10 on the ATP Tour, having won four titles including a Masters 1000, and three Grand Slam quarter-finals.
However, returning for a second shot at UTS glory in London this weekend, the Dane is still yet to find his first win, losing his opening clash to home favourite Jack “The Power” Draper by three quarters to love.
What’s going wrong for The Viking, and what does he need to change ahead of day two to keep his hopes alive?
Hope remains for The Viking
First, the good news: each of the UTS champions this season–Yibing Wu in Los Angeles, and Andrey Rublev in Frankfurt–began by losing their opening matches.
So, Rune is in good company by starting his London campaign off with a loss.
The Dane’s approach to his loss is concerning, however, with Rune giving a series of excuses in his post-match press conference. He referred to the format as “weird” before criticising the speed and bounce of the courts.
“Good job to Jack [Draper],” Rune said. “He played well, he did better in this weird system than I did. I don’t enjoy it so much right now to be honest.”
“Let’s be honest, the court is very, very bad here. So it’s like weird to play,” he continued. “Bad bounces, every time. One goes fast, one goes slow. One is extremely bouncy. It’s weird.”
If Rune is to turn his UTS Grand Final efforts around on day two, he’ll need to look internally rather than externally for answers. When asked what he believes the key elements are for him to win a UTS match, Rune’s response was not promising:
“I don’t know. I’m just going to play. We’ll see.”
Desperate times call for desperate measures heading into day two for Rune
Heading into day two of the UTS Grand Final in London, Rune will need to win both of his remaining matches–against Alexander Bublik and Gael Monfils–if he’s to have any chance of progressing.
Considering he just got swept 3-0 by a player outside the world’s top 50, these are desperate times for the Dane.
Thankfully, some of his later answers to media questions on Friday may provide some clues as to strategies he should employ on day two.
Talking to his racquet is a possibility, with Rune saying that if his racquet could speak, it would be reminding him to move his feet more. Maybe taking a health dose of spinach in the morning would boost his chances as well, with the 20-year-old saying, “You get strong eating spinach. You get big muscles, like Popeye.”
Or, perhaps it’s embracing his inner spirit animal, which Rune identifies as a tiger.
“Everyone knows they are extremely fast, always on the hunt, quite aggressive,” Rune explained. “I was more an elephant today though.”
If Rune is to turn his campaign around, he’ll certainly need to bring more of the tiger and less of the elephant in London.
