Holger Rune didn't look like himself in his second-round defeat at the 2024 Miami Open, and after the match, he explained why.
The recent months have been very turbulent in the young Dane's career. With his 2022 Paris Masters triumph, he certainly established himself as one of the most dangerous players on the ATP Tour, and even though he backed it up in 2023, the recent months tell a different story.
After initial success also early in 2023, Rune started to struggle around Wimbledon., Later, it became clear that he was hampered by an injury that was resolved, and then he got back to winning ways again.
After that, the infamous multiple coaching exchanges followed, and when it looked like the Danish player's career would finally stabilize in 2024, he started struggling with various illnesses.
Previously, an illness forced Rune to withdraw from the Ultimate Tennis Showdown in Oslo, and he also struggled during tournaments that followed after that on the ATP Tour.
Now, it seems that his shocking second-round defeat to Fabian Marozsan in Miami, which ended with a 1-6, 1-6 scoreline, was also influenced by an illness, which seemingly stopped the 20-year-old.
Now, it appears that Rune struggled with yet another illness, and prior to the match, he even considered withdrawing from the second tournament of the Sunshine Double.
"Unfortunately this was the end of Miami Open. I knew I wasn’t feeling 100% well today but I didn’t imagine my energy level would be so low. Looking back I should’ve pulled out. But it’s always difficult because I had been preparing and wanting to play for a week. Time to go back to Europe. Thanks for the support Miami."
Ultimately, however, Rune decided to proceed with the match, which resulted in a loss. Now, he will want to focus on the clay-court part of the season, with the 2024 Monte-Carlo Masters likely being his early goal.