Rune reveals the gestures that Djokovic and Nadal showed him in his early days: "I will never forget it"

Holger Rune seems to be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Eleven months after his terrible Achilles tendon injury that forced him to undergo surgery and go through a tough recovery, the Dane is back in action, specifically in a Davis Cup tie between Denmark and Bulgaria.

On the occasion of his return to the courts, Rune spoke with ATPtour.com in an interview that revolved around the ATP locker room and the relationship between players behind the scenes, as well as the difficult balance between rival and teammate. However, he wanted to emphasize the good treatment that both Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal had towards him in his early days.

Rune and gestures from Djokovic and Nadal that he will never forget

“Djokovic was very kind in giving me advice when I was young. The first time I entered the locker room of the seeds at Wimbledon, he approached me and said: 'Congratulations, you deserve to be here'. It was a nice compliment when entering the locker room of the greats,” confessed the one who would become the number four in the world.

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If the Serbian said it to him at Wimbledon, in Australia it was Nadal: “In Brisbane in 2024, I trained with Rafa and then, in the locker room, he was extremely nice: he asked me about my preseason and everything... It was a really great moment. Although I had been on the circuit for a few years, it was an incredible moment. It's something I will never forget.”

And despite not having that exchange with Roger Federer, he also cherishes a special moment with the Swiss: “I remember that one of the first times was when I played Roland Garros Junior and, suddenly, I was warming up next to Federer. He was about to play his quarterfinal match against Wawrinka, and I thought: 'Wow, this is crazy. We are literally warming up five meters apart and doing the same routines'.”

All of them, the Big 3, were very kind when I arrived on the circuit. It was crazy because, suddenly, I was sharing a locker room with people like Nadal and Djokovic, players I have admired my whole life,” noted the Nordic.

I had the pleasure of having Tum, Chaturapruek Sorathan and his family coming to Denmark sharing the court with me today for a very special cause . As an ambassador of @BornsVilkar we held a charity auction a year ago to raise funds to BørneTelefonen. Tum won the auction and I am… pic.twitter.com/pYRrHmzN3H

— Holger Rune (@holgerrune2003) September 14, 2026

In addition to recalling these moments, Rune also confessed that as the years go by and he settles into the circuit, it becomes complicated to give advice to colleagues he competes with every week: “Obviously, it becomes increasingly difficult to have these types of moments as you rise in the rankings, because then you become one of their real competitors.”

The Dane took the opportunity to explain his viewpoint: “Off the court, you want to be friendly, but at the same time, when you step onto it, you have to be a warrior, not caring about the opponent, just trying to beat him. Any sign of weakness is noticeable, even in the locker room. So you must keep your composure, no matter how you feel.”

This is what sometimes makes them have to wear a poker face: “If you have any physical issues, you have to try not to show it in the locker room because everyone is paying attention to everyone. That influences a lot. It's tough because you go from being good teammates to rivals and then back to being good teammates again. It's a strange dynamic, but I think most players understand it quite well and we all understand the sport and how it works,” concluded a Holger Rune who will relive these moments after almost a year on hiatus.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Rune revela los gestos que Djokovic y Nadal tuvieron con él en sus inicios: "Nunca lo olvidaré"