Ruud lists the reasons behind his decision to avoid South American clay

Mónica Barberán Munera | 7 Feb 2025 | 09.53

Casper Ruud at the ATP in Dallas 2025. Photo: Getty

Streaming ATP Madrid live tennis

🎾 Jaume Munar vs Casper Ruud

Sign up with Bet365 here
Make your first deposit of at least €5
Go to the “Live” section and watch every match

Watch the match on Bet365

Another year, Casper Ruud has decided to continue the start of the season playing on hard courts. The Norwegian wants to stick with this strategy, now trying out the ATP Dallas. In fact, things are going well for him, and today he will play the quarterfinals against Nishioka. Some time ago, Ruud switched from the South American clay before the Indian Wells and Miami Masters 1000 to focus on improving his game on cement courts. A strategy that worked quite well for him last year.

Back then, Casper reached the finals in Los Cabos and in Acapulco and hopes to replicate or improve those results now in Dallas, where he had never played before. "You have the European indoor tournaments before heading to the Middle East. So, there are different options, especially now in February, that you can choose. This year I wanted to come here to Dallas. It's a new tournament for me. I heard many good things, especially from John Isner. I know he lives here and has played this tournament from the start, and it has also been upgraded to a 500 category. It fit my schedule; I wanted to try something new this year, and Dallas was a great option," he said about coming to the United States.

Therefore, the number 5 in the rankings will then fly to Mexico, a place he really likes and is looking forward to visiting again. He wants to make the most of it before diving into the clay court tour that starts after the first two Masters 1000 of the year. There will be plenty of time to play on European clay: "I also like playing in Acapulco. I had a great time there last year and in previous years, so it's one of my favorite stops of the year and Dallas is quite close. I know there will also be an option to play in Europe and then in the Middle East, but then the travel to any other place is quite far from Dubai. So, this is quite convenient".

- Need to challenge himself

Also, another reason why Ruud wanted to enter this tournament in Dallas is because of its indoor nature. It is a significant reason to switch from clay, as the Norwegian is eager to improve in these conditions and perform better in end-of-year tournaments. He is currently showing a lot of aggression and willingness to step out of his comfort zone. "It's a fast indoor surface. I know my game can be quite vulnerable on this surface because I play a lot with spin. I don't always take the ball early, and I am vulnerable to getting attacked by flat or quick hitters, strong hitters. So, I know it, but I need to challenge myself. This is the last indoor tournament I will play in six or seven months, probably. I want to have a good ending," said Ruud, who will continue to fight for his second title on hard courts.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Ruud enumera los motivos detrás de su decisión de esquivar la arcilla sudamericana