Holger Rune shared that he is set to compete at the 2023 China Open in Beijing next week, despite previous injury worries.
Rune made the often difficult transition from the juniors to the ATP Tour like a duck to water. He achieved his biggest title on the main tour at the Paris Masters, where he beat Novak Djokovic in the final.
Then he backed that up with consistent performances on his preferred red clay in the first half of the 2023 season. Rune made two finals in the Monte Carlo and Italian Open in Rome, and even had a title to show for his good work by winning the 500-level event in Munich.
But since then, the young Dane has been held back by a problematic back injury that very much halted all of the substantial progress he was making. That resulted in Rune going on a seven-match losing run and not picking up a win of any kind since the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
With that being said, it is good that Rune is making the decision to return once the back issue is fully solved and has said he is refusing to rush his way back to competitive action. Often young players are very eager to get back to the level they were once at, but Rune is recognising short-term pain for long-term gain.
Rune announced on his Instagram account that he would be travelling to China ready for the China Open in Beijing. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for Rune to get back to full match rhythm and whether he shakes off the understandable rust well.
The biggest area of vulnerability for Rune due to the lower back problem is mainly the serve. The Dane will be hoping that that particular shot looks in good shape as he chases down one of the remaining 2023 ATP Finals spots that are up for grabs.
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