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A dejected Holger Rune walked out of the Grand Stand Arena in Rome, after a shock defeat at the hands of Sebastian Baez in the third round of the Italian Open. The Danish star has been a shadow of his former self throughout the season and finds himself languishing at World No. 13 on the ATP rankings.
After a poor start to the season, Rune was expected to get back to his best at the Italian Open, where he shone last year. The 21-year-old made it to the final in 2023, defeating Novak Djokovic and Casper Ruud on his way.
However, the young Dane could not mount a title challenge this year and was bundled out of the tournament in the third round. While his exit was an 'upset' due to the rankings, it was no real surprise given Rune's inconsistent groove over the last year.
Holger Rune's inconsistency over the last 12 months
Since last year, Rune's ATP rankings have been a mostly-downhill rollercoaster. The young Dane was eyeing a top 3 rank after his 2023 Wimbledon run, was ranked World No. 4 in September, but a poor run during the American leg of the season had Rune ending the year far below expectations.
Rune enjoyed his best performance on clay in 2023. He reached the final at the Italian Open, following it up with a quarterfinal run at the French Open. Later, the Dane reached the quarterfinal at Wimbledon where he was beaten by then-World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz. However, his plays went south after their encounter on grass.
Holger Rune saw a four-match losing streak after Wimbledon, which included first-round defeats at the Rogers Cup, Cincinnati Masters and the US Open. His inconsistency continued till the end of the season, the Dane ending the year without any titles as World No. 8 on the ATP rankings.
Rune's poor displays continued into 2024, being knocked out in the second round of the Australian Open. The 21-year-old has since made it to the semifinals at the Mexican Open and the quarterfinals at the Indian Wells Masters but has struggled to take his career into the next phase.
With another inconsistent run in 2024, Rune has dropped to number 13 in the world rankings ahead of the French Open.
Uncertainty around the coaching team could be a major concern for Holger Rune
Holger Rune announced that he had teamed up with Boris Becker in October 2023. Becker enjoyed successes with Novak Djokovic in the past, the duo having won multiple Grand Slam titles together. However, the German 'super coach' could not weave his magic on the young Dane and the duo parted ways in January 2024.
During his time with Becker, Rune was constantly under the limelightm, even off the court. The 21-year-old was often asked about Becker's fraud case in which the German was sentenced to prison. Despite his strong claim that he is not bothered by his coach's private life, the duo eventually decided to part ways and focus on their own interests.
After leaving Boris Becker, Rune announced that he is still looking for the best possible set-up for him to succeed. The Danish star claimed that he wants a coach who knows him and allows him to express himself.
"As you know, I have tried many coaching constellations over the past 12 months. It has not been easy to find the perfect match in the first attempt because I have worked with the same coach for 15 years my entire tennis life. I need people who know me who can be there all the time. I'll be looking forward to telling you more about my final trainer setup very soon," Rune announced.
Shortly after this statement, Rune announced that he had signed a deal with Patrick Mouratoglou as his new coach.
Rune has been working with Patrick Mouratoglou since February 2024. Mouratoglou comes with his own baggage of issues, just like Becker, as the Frenchman is under fire due to the Simona Halep controversy. The duo have struggled to hit the ground running but will hope that the French Open and the upcoming grass season will change their fortunes.
Now, with the French Open coming up, Rune will hope to mount a decent run and climb his way towards the top 10 in the world rankings. With Rune yet to realize his full potential, 2024 could be a crucial year for the future of the young Danish star.
