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Holger Rune defeated Henri Laaksonen of Switzerland 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 to advance to the third round at Roland Garros on Thursday. In the process, the 19-year-old Dane, who crushed Denis Shapovalov in the first round, became the youngest player since Rafael Nadal in 2005 to reach the third round in Paris without dropping a set.
In 2005, Nadal, making his Roland Garros debut, accounted for Lars Burgsmuller of Germany, Xavier Malisse of Belgium, and Frenchman Richard Gasquet in straight sets in his first three matches. After getting past Roger Federer in the semifinals, the Mallorcan defeated Mariano Puerta of Argentina to win his maiden Grand Slam title.
Rune, the 2019 French Open junior champion, will face home favorite Hugo Gaston in the third round on Saturday.
Holger Rune is the second-youngest player in the top 100 after Carlos Alcaraz
Holger Rune made his professional debut in 2020 after having displayed his prowess in several junior tournaments.
Rune, who trained at the Mouratoglou Academy, beat Toby Kodat to win the 2019 French Open boys singles title. The Dane won his first ATP challenger title at Biella in 2021 and made his Grand Slam debut the same year at the US Open.
Rune became the second-youngest player (after Carlos Alcaraz) to break into the top 100 when he rose to World No. 99 in January. He is currently ranked No. 40. The 19-year-old beat Alexander Zverev in Munich to register his first win over a top-10 player earlier this year. The Dane went on to become the third-youngest champion in Munich in the Open Era.
After beating Denis Shapovalov in the first round of the French Open, Rune said he hoped the title in Munich could serve as a stepping stone for him.
"To be able to have chances against these guys, to be able to, you know, win my first title in Munich was a huge step forward in my career. I'm really positive and working hard every day to get better," he said.
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