Barcelona Champion Rune Retires In His First Match At Madrid Open
NewsSaturday, 26 April 2025 at 00:29
Holger Rune was stopped by an injury once again, this time in his opening match at the 2025 Madrid Open.
Tennis can be a brutal sport, and Rune got to experience that at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid. Only a few days ago, the young Dane celebrated in Spain because he won the Barcelona Open.
In the final, Rune played against Carlos Alcaraz, who injured himself during the match and later withdrew from the Madrid Open. It seems that both finalists were impacted by the intensity of their first set, as Rune ended his Madrid Open campaign after retiring from his second-round match against Flavio Cobolli.
Early in the match, Rune even had three chances to break his opponent's serve, but from the moment the scoreboard showed 2-2, the young Dane couldn't win another game. Rune even requested to see a doctor, and he lost the first set 2-6.
After losing the opening set and assessing his injury, Rune made the decision not to continue playing the match, retiring after one set of play. It was another disappointing retirement for Rune, and unfortunately, not his first this year.
It seems that the 21-year-old just can't avoid physical issues. Former ATP World No. 224 player, Peter Bastiansen, spoke to the Danish publication TV2, expressing concern over the large number of Rune's withdrawals.
"If you look at some of the other players, he is clearly the player who has withdrawn from the most tournaments due to injuries. Whether it is the stomach or the shoulder, the knee… If you are not ready, it is completely crazy to waste your time on competing. Then it is better to recover and travel on to the next tournament."
Although Rune didn't provide an interview for TV, his mother, Aneke Rune, later provided a statement, clarifying the situation. It seems that there was a chance the ATP World No. 9 player wouldn't even play the match at all, as the injury was present already before the match started.
"He felt something in his knee in the warm-up and received treatment before the match. There were serious considerations about withdrawing before the match, but the agreement was that no chances should be taken by continuing if he felt something in the match. We have a Grand Slam just around the corner."
Rune will now focus on recovering for the Italian Open in Rome. Like Alcaraz, the young Dane will target that tournament, but both players will want to peak at Roland Garros.
Popular News
Just In
