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If you were to mention the name Holger Rune before the 2022 season, people would likely look back at you with blank faces. This exciting Danish player is just 19 years of age, yet he has been making waves this year. Amazingly, Rune has progressed from a relative nobody to his ranking of 45 in the world. If that wasn’t enough, Rune only played his first Grand Slam main draw at the 2021 US Open. This obviously makes him a complete newbie compared to other peers near his current ranking.
Of course, it was the 2022 French Open where he really made a name for himself. Rune made the quarter-finals before losing to Casper Ruud, and it was here that people really started to sit up and take notice. However, the last two weeks have proved to be his best yet. He stunned Stefanos Tsitsipas in the finals of Stockholm to claim his second ATP title. This was a 250 event, and it helped Rune to rack up 250 points to boost his ranking.
If anyone thought that this win may have been a flash in the pan, Rune soon silenced those doubters. In the previous week, Rune marched his way through the finals of the ATP 500 event in Basel. He beat players including de Minaur, Humbert, Rinderknech, and Bautista Agut before losing to the sensational Canadian, Auger-Aliassime in the finals. Of course, his ranking will go up next week when the new rankings are published as a result of this run.
So what is it that makes Holger Rune such a dangerous player? And do the last two weeks confirm that he is a huge talent? Here are my thoughts.
The Mighty Holger Rune – What Makes Him a Threat?
There are many exciting things about the game of Holger Rune. However, of all the traits that make him such a great player, I feel there are two that particularly stand out:
Enormous Serve
One of the best things about Rune’s game, in my own opinion, is his serve. He has a powerful first serve and a very active second serve, with plenty of movement on the ball. Of course, this feature brings him plenty of aces and cheap points. Adding to this, when he is rolling through his service games with ease, he is able to put his opponents under considerable pressure. I believe that he also hits his spots pretty well with his serve too. So it’s not just the speed that catches others out – it’s also the accuracy.
Clinical Forehand
If there is one feature that complements a big serve perfectly, it’s a huge forehand. And there is no question that Rune certainly possesses one of those! Specifically relating to his service games, even if the opponent scrambles his serve back, he can follow it up with one big blow and the point is over. Yet when he is into the rallies with his opponents, it’s clear that he works his forehand into play as often as possible.
He hits it heavy from the back and he can flatten the ball out tremendously too. So for me, he is certainly a guy to watch moving forward.
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