"The worst off-season planning in the history of off-seasons" - Tennis fans lay into Casper Ruud after 2R loss to Taro Daniel at Mexican Open

Casper Ruud made a disappointingly early exit at the Mexican Open in Acapulco, suffering a close loss to Taro Daniel in the second round on Wednesday. Several fans are now criticizing the World No. 4 for his performance at the tournament, highlighting in particular his decision to take a break after the Australian Open.

Casper Ruud had a dismal start to the 2023 season, with early exits at the ASB Classic and the Australian Open. He took a break from the ATP tour in February and returned to compete at the Mexican Open in Acapulco.

Ruud had a shaky start to the tournament, with a challenging match against qualifier Guido Andreozzi. His second-round match was also closely contested, but Taro Daniel came out on top 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(5). This was Daniel's first victory over a top 10 opponent, having previously gone 0-8 in eight matches.

Ruud produced an uncharacteristically high 48 unforced errors in the match, with 29 errors coming off his forehand.

Tennis fans were quick to lambast Casper Ruud for his disappointing performance in Acapulco. One fan pointed out the misjudgement by the World No. 4 and his team to treat February as the off-season despite there being bigger tournaments on the horizon.

"The worst off-season planning in the history of off-seasons," the fan wrote.

Another fan stated that the Norwegian had gifted the match away despite being handed a lifeline by his opponent.

"Lol that was shockingly bad from Ruud after Taro gifted him the point at 4-4 in the breaker. He then went ahead and gifted Taro the entire match," the fan wrote.

Here are some more reactions to Casper Ruud's loss to Taro Daniel:

Casper Ruud on his decision to take a break from the ATP tour after the Australian Open

Ruud at the 2023 Australian Open

Following a shock exit in the second round of the Australian Open at the hands of Jenson Brooksby, Casper Ruud announced his intention to take a break from the ATP tour in February.

In an exclusive interview with Eurosport, the World No. 4 revealed his decision to treat February as a kind of pre-season to focus on training his physique, since there were no major tournaments during that month. He also expressed his belief that shortening the season to eight and a half months would better prepare him for the hectic tournaments to come.

"There are no major tournaments in February, and I will therefore use the time to train my physique and actually use that month as a kind of 'pre-season', which I would normally have in December," Ruud said at the time.

Ruud also stated that he hoped his decision to take time off the tour would work in his favor.

"It will be exciting to see if it goes well, but it is at least worth a try. When Indian Wells starts at the beginning of March, I am ready for a new year with many hectic months and tournaments in a row. It will be good to be able to break up the year a bit like that. I hope it's a good recipe," he added.

Casper Ruud is now 3-4 for the 2023 season. He next plays at the Indian Wells Masters, which starts on 7 March.