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Casper Ruud recently addressed his approach in the ATP Tour and claimed to be "fine" with others hyped more than him at the Hamburg European Open on Friday.
Top seed Casper Ruud made a comeback to claim victory over Chilean Cristian Garin in the Hamburg clay-court event. After losing the first set, the Norwegian forced his way back into the match to register a 1-6, 6-2, 6-2 win and secure a spot in the quarterfinal of the tournament.
In a post-match press conference, the World No. 4 opened up on his levelheaded approach. Casper Ruud said he preferred delivering noteworthy results rather than being just a "showman". He said:
"I'm the person who I am, the player I am. I'm very very aware that I don't play very flashy, my game style is not this. To me, my tennis career is most about delivering good results and not play the most beautiful shots or the most beautiful rallies.
"I know that this is not my style. I prefer to play steady, stable tennis, doing well as I can. I don't really think about trying to be a showman or doing all this stuff on the court."
The 24-year-old admitted to confining himself to his authentic self. Furthermore, Ruud believes less hype contributed to him working on his skills in the "shadow" of others.
"I just try to stay in my world, my career, doing the things that work for me. Yeah, maybe that is the reason who knows but I’m perfectly fine with others being hyped up more than myself.
He continued:
"It's up to the viewers, up to the fans who they want to kind of hype up. Less hype, less expectation I guess and I can kind of do my work in the shadow of the other guys"
Casper Ruud to lock horns with Arthur Fils in the QF of Hamburg Open
No. 1 seed Casper Ruud will square off against Arthur Fils in the quarterfinal of the Hamburg European Open.
The Norwegian entered the ATP 500 event after suffering a defeat at the hands of Andrey Rublev in the Swedish Open final. In the tournament, Ruud triumphed over challenges posed by Sebastian Baez and Cristian Garin, in the first and second-round respectively.
His opponent, Arthur Fils, outlasted Dusan Lajovic in the event's previous round. In the match, the Frenchman wrapped the opening set, 7-5, but faced resistance from the Serbian in the second set. However, Fils did not break and emerged victorious after winning two tight sets, 7-5, 7-5, securing his quarterfinal berth.
Casper and Fils' quarterfinal clash will amount to their first-ever meet on the ATP Tour.
