Holger Rune recalls Leylah Fernandez, Andrey Rublev and himself winning the ITF juniors Masters trophy
Holger Rune recently reminisced on winning the ITF Junior Masters finals alongside other current players who also achieved the feat.
Rune, Leylah Fernandez, Andrey Rublev, Brandon Nakashima and Emil Ruusuvuri have all won the ITF Junior Masters title as young tennis professionals. The latest edition of the tournament was recently announced to kick off in October this year.
The Danish teenager took to Instagram to reshare an ITF Tennis post highlighting past winners of the tournament.
“Junior Masters, familiar faces,” Rune wrote.
Fernandez, Rublev, Nakashima and Ruusuvori have all been regulars on the ATP tour since graduating from the ITF circuit. Rublev recently won the first ATP 1000 title of his career at the 2023 Monte-Carlo Masters.
World No. 43 Nakashima also made a significant impact last season, capturing the San Diego Open and the ATP Next Gen Finals.
Canadian youngster Fernandez opened her account on the women’s tour by winning the 2022 Monterrey Open, outclassing Camila Osorio in the final.
Ruusuvuori has also been knocking on the door in top-level tournaments, securing a runner-up finish at the Maharashtra Open and a quarterfinal run at the Miami Masters.
19-year-old Rune has been sensational in the last few months on the men’s tour. The Dane bagged his maiden ATP 1000 title at the Paris Masters last year and emerged victorious at the 2022 Stockholm Open. He also reached his first ever quarterfinal at a Grand Slam event at the 2022 French Open. The Danish youngster started the new 2023 season on a positive note, amassing 17 wins from 25 matches and a runner-up finish at the Monte Carlo Masters.
Pam Shriver wonders whether Holger Rune is the "modern day John McEnroe"
Former tennis player Pam Shriver has compared Holger Rune to tennis legend John McEnroe. The 19-year-old is currently competing at the BMW Open in Munich after a solid run at the Monte-Carlo Masters. He defeated the likes of Dominic Thiem, Matteo Berrettini, Daniil Medvedev and Jannik Sinner en route to the finals, where he lost to Andrey Rublev.
Rune's semi-final tie with Sinner garnered a lot of attention as the Dane was constantly jeered by the biased Italian crowd who were rooting for Sinner. Rune didn't hold back with his emotions, exchanging many moments with the crowd.
Pam Shriver took to her Twitter account and compared Rune to John McEnroe, who was known for his infamous on-court tirades.
"Is Holger Rune the modern day Johnny Mac?" Shriver wrote.
Is Rune the modern day Johnny Mac?
While McEnroe surely used the expressive nature to his advantage and added seven Grand Slam titles to his trophy cabinet, it'll be interesting to see how Rune maintains a balance between his on-court abilities and mental strength on the tennis court.