"We were a little naive, little starstruck like 'Oh Federer, 20 Grand Slams'" - Holger Rune's mother Aneke explains reasons behind Severin Luthi split

Holger Rune's mother Aneke recently explained the reasons that resulted in the Dane's split with coach Severin Luthi.

Luthi was a constant part of Roger Federer's team from 2007 until the time the Swiss retired in 2022. In December 2023, Rune roped Luthi in as his coach, but the duo's partnership ended a few days after the Dane's second-round exit from the Australian Open 2024.

Rune's mother Aneke appeared in a recent episode of The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast and revealed that their decision to hire Luthi might have been influenced by Federer's success with him.

"Maybe also we were a little naive, also a little you know starstruck like ‘Oh Roger [Federer], 20 Grand Slams, it’s not a problem to bring in a new coach’. Clearly, it was naive," she said.

Aneke further questioned Luthi's methods. She denied opposing any changes proposed by the Swiss coach, but claimed that executing the changes in the middle of the Australian Open didn't help. She said:

"I think if you come in and you want to implement a lot of changes in the routines that the player normally do, this is great because if you’re No. 7 [Holger Rune's current rank], you’re not the best in the world. So, you need to do things differently in order to improve," she said.

"What is tough here is starting to do the things at a Grand Slam. If we look back, then it was not the right timing to introduce new stuff because the player is more nervous at Grand Slams," she added.

---

"Holger Rune is super energetic... you cannot take out the energy off" - Aneke Rune

Holger Rune

According to Holger Rune's mother Aneke, another reason behind the split with Severin Luthi were the disagreements in devising ways to channel the youngster's energy.

"There was something about the energy level you put on the court. Holger is super energetic, he’s explosive in his tennis, he likes to play this way, he’s a passionate player, and for sure there are things where you should say 'Here you have to control or save your energy a little'," Aneke said during the same episode of The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast.

"But you cannot take out the energy off Holger, lose the explosiveness, lose the next game, lose the things that are Holger’s identity. So it’s really a fine balance in where’s the ice and where’s the fire," she added.

Notably, Boris Becker, who joined Holger Rune's team a few weeks before Severin Luthi's arrival, has also parted ways with the World No. 7.