Holger Rune didn't have a single win on grass a few weeks ago but now he has a handful booking the Wimbledon quarter-final.
There is a lot of greenery in Denmark but not a lot of grass courts apparently. Danish rising star Holger Rune didn't play much tennis on grass growing up and it's the reason why he didn't have a win on the surface on the ATP Tour until this year.
He lost all three matches last year but got that monkey off his back recently by earning a first-ever win over Maxime Cressy at the Cinch Championships. The Danish player narrowly missed out on the final as he was beaten by Alex de Minaur.
Even so, it was a huge confidence booster for Rune who is putting together a really solid run at Wimbledon. He was incredibly lucky against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina but still, booking the quarter-final on a surface where you didn't have a win until a few weeks ago is actually better than solid.
Another thing that was better than solid was the tennis he produced in this one. Taking on Grigor Dimitrov on grass can be a daunting task as the Bulgarian is capable of producing a really high level on it.
It was looking like that after the first set which saw him hit 15 winners along with four aces. The scoreboard said 6-3 for Grigor and while it wasn't the last six he would see next to his name, the set's number didn't move from 1.
The second set was an interesting one because Dimitrov continued riding that momentum jumping out to an early lead. He totally controlled the match but then things flipped and suddenly Rune was the more convincing player. He certainly was in the tiebreak which he won 8-6 after some spectacular shot-making. Rune had 15 winners in that one.
The next one was a flawless set from both players, but really. Neither faced a single break point as both lost only 3 points behind the first serve. Rune won the ace's battle 5-4 though Dimitrov won the winner's battle 16-15.
Rune won the unforced errors battle having one less than Dimitrov and that proved crucial. Predictably it was settled in the tiebreak as Rune won 7-4. Fully in control of the match now, Rune kept playing his game as Dimitrov faltered.
It was somewhat expected but ultimately in the shot-making battle, Rune emerged on top. The final score was 3-6 7-6(6) 7-6(4) 6-3 for Rune who had 11 aces, 46 winners, and 27 unforced errors. He will play either Carlos Alcaraz or Matteo Berrettini in the next round.
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