Casper Ruud started off his Japan Open campaign in a great way by beating native player Yosuke Watanuki in two sets.
Casper Ruud hasn't been in the best form since touching down in Asia, but this event in Japan is a really important one for him. He's part of the group of players who are fighting for a spot at the ATP Finals, and a good run here could significantly boost his chances.
Making a winning start at the event and against a tricky player like Watanuki is really good. The first set was complicated, much like the entire matchup, but Ruud handled it about as well as you can hope. The start saw Ruud play better as Watanuki had to save some early break points, but his tremendous serve allowed him to do so.
The courts in Japan play really fast this year, so points were rather short as both opted for a very aggressive approach that benefits them. Watanuki found a great rhythm and nearly snatched away the opening set as he had a 40-15 lead on Ruud's serve at 5-5 in the opening set.
He didn't use the break points, so we ended up in a tiebreak where both had set points, but Ruud converted his. It totally shifted the momentum on his side as he took an early break at the start of the second set, which kind of killed off the match.
He never allowed Watanuki anything close to a chance in the remainder of the set, breaking him once more in the final game of the match to win it in two. The final score was 7-6(6) 6-3 for the Norwegian, who keeps his chances for Turin alive no matter how small they are. He'll need a few more wins to get there, though.
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