Holger Rune produced a confident reply when asked about his upcoming Wimbledon quarter-final clash against world number one on the ATP Tour, Carlos Alcaraz.
Rune reached the final eight at Wimbledon after defeating the experienced Grigor Dimitrov in the fourth round. It was a tricky contest for Rune as he lost the first set 6-3 before defeating Dimitrov in second and third set tie-breaks and then showed his quality by winning the final set 6-3.
At the time of winning his final 16 clash, Rune was unaware who his next opponent would be as the Alcaraz-Matteo Berrettini match was still ongoing. But, the 20-year-old Dane showed no fear during his post-match interview on the court, sharing that he feels optimistic rather than nervous about reaching his first Wimbledon quarter-finals.
"Alcaraz has been showing that he's top of the world at a very young age so it's going to be tough. I'm very much looking forward to it. I'm not afraid, I'm excited."
Eventually, Rune learned he would play his long-term friend Alcaraz in the quarter-finals. It represents a tough challenge for the Danish player, who has never progressed past the final eight of a Grand Slam after he fell at the quarter-final stage at the 2023 and 2022 Roland Garros - both against Casper Ruud.
But, the prospect of facing Alcaraz on a different surface appeared to give Rune confidence, as he shared during his post-match press conference after defeating Dimitrov.
"I think the two times I made the quarterfinal, obviously I played the same guy twice, so I had not the best memories from the last time I did. Now it's a new opportunity. It's the first time here in Wimbledon, so everything is new, which is nice. It's great to play Alcaraz in a match like this. It's really exciting. It's a match that I want to play."
"For me, I'm just going to give full. I know it's a big chance for me to be in the quarters, going deep in the tournament. I'm going to try to take the chance because you don't get it every week."
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