Casper Ruud lost to Marton Fucsovics with a double bagel the last time they played, and he finally avenged that loss at the 2024 Estoril Open.
That match happened many years ago, in 2017, when Ruud was only 18, so many things have changed since then. He's become one of the best tennis players in the world and has actually put together one of the most impressive seasons among all players so far.
He is cruising through the Estoril draw, which isn't a surprise because he won the ATP 250 event last year, so he's the defending champion. Considering the circumstances and his current form, it was expected that the Norwegian would be highly motivated for this match.
From the start, Fucsovics was never really in this match, and he was never really a threat, also maybe because of an injury that he struggled with. The opening set started with an early break by Ruud, and he had a chance to add another one later but failed to do so.
It didn't really matter all too much because he cruised comfortably in that set to finish it off 6-3. The second was even more one-sided, as the top seed took an early break immediately and then added another one to take a 4-0 lead.
From there, it was again a rather simple cruise to the finish line, as he finished the match in two sets, winning it 6-3, 6-2. It was an effective win for Ruud, who played very well.
He won most of the points on his serve, allowing only one break point in the entire match. He saved it, of course, while converting three of the five he had on the serve of the Hungarian.
With the win, Ruud advanced to the semi-final, coming close to yet another final at the Estoril Open.