Bouncing back with a bang in Beijing.
Holger Rune snapped a four-match losing streak in style Friday in the Chinese capital by surging to a 6-4, 6-4 triumph against Felix Auger-Aliassime at the China Open.
Rune arrived in Asia without a tour-level win since Wimbledon and had not competed since late August at the US Open. He may have been cursing his luck when drawn against World No. 15 Auger-Aliassime in China but the 20-year-old delivered a rock-solid display to forge an 84-minute triumph on the Beijing Olympic Green Tennis Center’s Diamond Court.
“It felt good. I’ve had a tough period, both with my body and match circumstances, so I’m just happy to be back feeling good,” said Rune. “Feeling mentally well on and off the court. I’m just super happy with my level today.”
First win since Wimbledon 👏
A fantastic point from @holgerrune2003 on his way to taking out Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 6-4!@ChinaOpen | #ChinaOpen pic.twitter.com/Bi3RM3zUB3
— ATP Tour (@atptour) September 29, 2023
A single break in each set proved enough for Rune to improve to 2-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against Auger-Aliassime, who has had a moderate year by his standards but showed signs of his best in helping Team World to Laver Cup glory in Vancouver last weekend. Rune missed that event due to a back injury but was delighted with the way his body held up on the hard courts of Beijing.
“I was feeling very good. I didn’t feel anything in my body,” said Rune. “This is good. I don’t mind muscle soreness, but I’m too young to have these kinds of problems, so it’s good to feel good out there. I’m feeling healthy, taking care of my body and I’m super happy to play without pain and just enjoy myself.”
The next week in Beijing could be crucial for Rune as he seeks to reach the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time. The Dane, who was an alternate at the season-ending finals last year but did not play, sits just inside the qualification spots in eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin on 3,100 points, but he is only 90 points clear of Taylor Fritz.
Rune can extend that gap and book his ninth tour-level quarter-final appearance of the year when he meets Grigor Dimitrov next in Beijing. The Bulgarian earlier sealed his second-round spot at the ATP 500 with a 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-1 triumph against Mackenzie McDonald.
Nicolas Jarry added a third Top 10 victory to the best ATP Tour season of his career with a 6-4, 6-4 triumph against Stefanos Tsitsipas on Lotus Court. The Chilean delivered a high-quality serving performance in his 91-minute triumph, saving both break points he faced and winning 83 per cent (29/35) of points behind his first delivery.
The 27-year-old Jarry is now 32-15 for the season, which includes titles won on clay in Santiago and Geneva. He and World No. 5 Tsitsipas have now split four Lexus ATP Head2Head clashes in 2023, with the Greek winning in Monte-Carlo and Los Cabos and Jarry prevailing in Halle and Beijing. The Chilean’s reward for his victory on Friday in Beijing is a second-round clash with Italian Matteo Arnaldi.
Eighth seed Alexander Zverev remains a potential quarter-final opponent for Jarry and Arnaldi after the German defeated Diego Schwartzman 6-7(2), 6-1, 6-4. Zverev, who claimed his 21st ATP Tour title in Chengdu on Tuesday, converted five of 10 break points he earned against Schwartzman to advance to face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Zverev is a two-time semi-finalist in Beijing (2017, 2019) and will seek another deep run in the Chinese capital to enhance his own Nitto ATP Finals hopes. He is currently seventh in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, just 300 points behind sixth-placed Tsitsipas.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]