Novak Djokovic and Holger Rune will meet in the 2022 Paris Masters final but they met also last year at the last Grand Slam of the season.
Back then, Rune was ranked outside of Top 100 of the ATP Rankings and played in his first main draw of a major. Unfortunately for him, he got to play the first-seeded Djokovic in the first round of the event.
After losing the first set 1-6, Rune fought back in the second and won it in a tie-break. However, he started to have problems with cramps in the third and fourth and eventually lost 1-6, 7-6(5), 2-6, 1-6.
Yet, it seemed that he will lose the last set 0-6 as he could barely move and if Djokovic wanted to, he would swiftly end it. However, he offered his opponent to win 1 game in a moment that was appreciated by everyone watching the match.
Speaking about his opponent after the match, the Serbian said: "We just had a little chat in the locker room. It's an emotional moment for him. It's not easy to see that. He's really sad. I understand that. I've been through that. I just told him that he handled himself extremely well. He didn't want to stop."
The young Dane also spoke about the moment, saying: “I never want to stop matches. I want to complete them. I want to try to see if I can find solution. Against a player like Novak, it’s tough if you can’t move 100%. Even if you move 100%, you’re not sure you’re going to beat him. It’s tough if you have no legs.”
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