Rune justifies his defeat in New York: "The knee is a big part of the problem"

Carlos Navarro | 27 Aug 2024 | 10.56

Holger Rune, during his defeat yesterday against Nakashima. Source: Getty

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The results of Holger Rune in Grand Slams throughout 2024 are, clearly, disappointing. The Danish player faced a tough debut at this US Open 2024, going up against Brandon Nakashima, a non-seeded player who was in better form... but the way he was defeated raised many alarms. Holger was swept off the court completely, concluding a year without reaching a single quarterfinal in the Majors, with performances that hint at a clear stagnation in his tennis.

It seemed that things could be changing for the Danish player. Patrick Mouratoglou's departure from the team this summer, leaving Kenneth Carlsen in charge, was expected to bring clarity and stability to Rune, much needed at this point. However, the semifinals in Cincinnati appear to be nothing more than an illusion: the Dane still seems uncertain about his game plan, with a plethora of resources at his disposal that lack coherence on the tennis court.

After the tough loss to the American player, Rune spoke to the Danish media outlet Ekstra Bladet and was very clear in his analysis. When asked if he was satisfied with his Grand Slam performance this year, his response was immediate: "What do you think?". He then mentioned a different reason that partly explains his disappointment: a knee injury that troubled him in Hamburg, seemed to have recovered, but resurfaced at the worst possible moment.

"It caused me many issues with my serve and when I stretched to reach the backhand, as it hurt when I bent my leg. Most of my errors were due to my serve and backhand", points out Rune, who could only land 39% of his first serves in play. "It's a ridiculously low percentage. From there, playing becomes much more difficult. I usually rely heavily on my right knee when serving. I always believe I can win, but this makes it all much harder. I had to improvise: it's very tough to win a tennis match without a serve."

INJURIES, A CAUSE FOR CONCERN?

This isn't the first injury the Danish player has suffered in recent months. He also withdrew from the Olympic Games due to discomfort in his wrist, another sensitive area that has raised internal concerns. "This triggers a lot of thoughts in my head about what I can do better. Whether in physical training, because I need more recovery time, or for any reason. I try to make my own decisions, but also follow some advice from my team. It's not that I isolate myself, but the truth is that my body has been suffering more than usual lately."

"I wouldn't say I've had too many injuries in my career, but I've been struggling more in recent months. Whether it's due to inadequate treatment, lack of strength, too much tennis, or excessive training... we need to look into that and then make the right decision". Without holding back, Holger now faces the final stretch of the season with caution, low on energy, and accumulating disappointments in major tournaments. Is it time to revamp his path or take a definitive break to work on these issues? The answer will come in the next few months... but the outlook, indeed, is not too promising.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Rune justifica su derrota en Nueva York: "La rodilla es gran parte del problema"

Holger Rune