CANVAS OF CLAY
Holger Rune, Monster Mentality, and Positive Body Language — A Blooming Relationship at Last
The budding 20-year-old's positive body language in Monte Carlo might be key to a long-awaited ascendancy.
Denmark's Holger Rune, 20, was up against it in a frighteningly hostile Monte Carlo atmosphere, taking on not just the antagonistic crowd but the chair umpire and match supervisor as he traded shots with Jannik Sinner at the ROLEX Monte-Carlo Masters.
Rune has barely looked himself for the last 12 months.
He suffered a drastic dip in form after Wimbledon and struggled with a debilitating back injury, making the foolish decision to play through pain, that ultimately culminated in a wretched run of 10 losses in 11 matches.
Rune's mediocre performance levels at ATP Tour-level tournaments like the Australian Open, Rotterdam Open, and most tellingly, the ATP Masters 1000 in Miami painted a grim picture of an out-of-sorts player, desperately reaching out for some guidance.
But back in Monte Carlo on his favored clay surface, the Danish prodigy was aggressive, brave beyond measure, and albeit losing in three sets, Rune rose to the occasion in a defiant-resilient manner, battling Sinner with the monster mentality that has orchestrated many a comeback in tennis history.
You could spot the hunger, perhaps trepidation even, that sharpened the 20-year-old's wits for his mismatch clash against Sinner, the best tennis player in the world.
Rune had come prepared to suffer and considering he spent over five hours on court the day before, many expected the Dane to get steamrolled by the Italian Sinner.
Instead, for two hours and 41 minutes, an intriguing modern-day classic unfurled on Court Rainier III as Rune matched Sinner's intensity, fighting fire with fire, as both players sought to douse the other's flames.
Sinner fired all kinds of laser shots at Rune, with an incredible 76 percent conversion rate, as they whistled past the Dane in blinding speed on Monte Carlo’s lackluster clay.
He repeatedly got the better of Rune with ferocious backhands and thunderous forehands, laced with imperial shot quality at 9.3 out of 10 and traveling at 178 kilometers per hour. In the end, the stats did not make for good reading but Rune held on. He kept fighting.
Unlike in numerous games this season, Jannik Sinner hurling the battering ram at Holger Rune did not result in his crumbling under immense pressure. But spirited defiance gleamed in Rune's eyes as he led an onslaught in the second set.
Rune was at the peak of his game in this second set of the Monte-Carlo quarterfinal, unleashing an armada of attacks in wave after wave of sustained pressure.
Where Sinner ripped forehand winners with Rune rooted to his spot, the Dane replied in a perfect sweep of controlled risk and aggression. He mixed drop shot winners with teasing drop volleys and even produced one stunning drop volley forcing the entire court gaping in bewilderment.
A string of 11 unforced errors from the young Dane eventually gifted Sinner two match points in the second set tiebreak; the scoreboard said Rune was in deep trouble.
To the outside world and unruly fans in attendance who jeered and whistled at deafening decibels, this was it.
Game. Set. Match.
Sinner had Rune exactly where he wanted him. Backed against the wall with no escape in sight.
This was supposed to be textbook stuff: the chair umpire had made a wrong call earlier contributing to Sinner's match points, Rune received two warnings for time violation and improper conduct, while the errant crowd piled abuse on him including showing him the middle finger.
He was supposed to be distracted, distraught, destabilized. But that never happened.
Just like he did the previous day in an epic three-hour and 31-minute thriller against Grigor Dimitrov, Rune dismissed Sinner's two match points with an ease and efficacy reminiscent of Rafael Nadal's stunning comeback over Daniil Medvedev at the ATP Finals years ago.
Sinner subsequently rallied to victory in the third set, sealing his ranking as the ATP's World No. 2 at the expense of Carlos Alcaraz who withdrew from this ROLEX Monte-Carlo Masters tournament with a right forearm injury.
And yet, it was ironic but absolutely fitting that Rune, donning a fiery orange Bumblebee kit emerged from this intriguing tussle, not just as the pantomime villain but the budding 20-year-old brimming with confidence in the face of defeat.
Go back to February and he would've comfortably lost this match in a plump.
Rune's early exit from the Rotterdam Open — a humiliating loss to then World No. 57 Alexander Shevchenko — was mired by errors, lacking fighting spirit, and notable for his lethargic body language and irritating tantrums on the court.
Those were the days he enjoyed his status as a Top 10 player and perhaps, lacked self-reflection, belief, and that raw hunger that catapulted him to stardom two years ago as he was voted the ATP's Newcomer Of The Year.
Holger Rune will depart from the ATP's Top 10 on Monday for the first time in 16 months at the end of this ROLEX Monte-Carlo Masters.
It was a rollercoaster run beginning on the first week of January 2, 2023, and lasted until April 2024. Per the projected live rankings, he's expected to lose 400 points and will drop five spots from World No. 7 to No. 12.
Undoubtedly, this will be disappointing for a player who has consciously stated his intent to be “No. 1 in the world and win Grand Slams” but it might not necessarily be a bad thing. It had been coming after all.
Rune and his coaching team, chaperoned by head coach Patrick Mouratoglou and performance analyst Mike James have set the target of using AI-driven data, Tennis IQ, to turn Rune into one of the most versatile players.
“Patrick Mouratoglou had the vision for me to come into Mouratoglou Academy and use this analysis for the benefit of players like Holger,’’ James told the ATP Tour last autumn.
“Holger is obsessed with the game. He's eating the tennis ball for lunch, dinner, and evening meal, and he's always watching videos and diving into it anyway. So it was a really nice fit.”
In truth, the performance analytics technology Tennis IQ has developed Rune into a better player.
This is evident in his smart court positioning (often dropping deep behind the baseline), higher “in attack’’ rate — attacking opportunities he creates for himself — and the latest variety to his game where he mixes up drop shots and drop volleys spiced with an extra coat of higher top spins.
On a recent episode of the Tennis Channel podcast, Roger Federer, the master of reinvention, described Holger Rune as unique while noting the Dane is “one of the best forward movers on clay.’’
Regardless, the data and accolades will not propel Rune to where he feels he should be at the top echelon of tennis nor return him to the Top 10 where, deservedly, he should roam.
There can be no sweetening of the pie, no need for sugarcoating — the last 12 months have been an incongruous mess for Rune.
But based on evidence in Monte Carlo, his battle of skill and tenacity not just against Sinner but Grigor Dimitrov must become the least level he expects from himself.
Over the next few months, his ranking will slip further if he fails to defend his customary 250 points at the Bavarian International Tennis Championships in Munich.
He'll probably see Alcaraz win another Grand Slam title and Sinner continue his charge to bulldoze everyone to all available ATP Tour titles while joggling for the top spot with Novak Djokovic.
It'll be daunting, frustrating, excruciating.
But like he responded here in Monte Carlo in the gravest of circumstances, he must remember that the battle to the top is an arduous long journey; embracing this setback is definitely the way forward.
Read more on Holger Rune and our tennis coverage here on Beyond The Scoreboard:
