"Kind of reminds me of myself" - Novak Djokovic praises Holger Rune ahead of Paris Masters final
Novak Djokovic praised Holger Rune ahead of their meeting in the final of the Paris Masters.
The Dane reached his maiden Masters 1000 final by beating Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 6-2 in the semifinals. Djokovic, on the other hand, survived a scare from Stefanos Tsitsipas, beating him 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(4) to book his place in the title clash.
In his post-match press conference, the Serb was asked to give his thoughts on Rune. He called the Dane a very nice guy and the future of tennis along with the likes of Carlos Alcaraz.
"Well, I know him quite well because we have trained on different surfaces. I really like him. Very nice guy. Great family. Great team of people around him. Fantastic work ethic that he has, and he deserves his success. I followed him last three, four years, his uprising through challenger level and then getting now to top 15 in the world," Novak Djokovic said
No doubt that he's the future of the sport, along with Alcaraz and some other guys. Hopefully I can suspend his first title Masters 1000 event. We get along really well. Good friends off the court," he added.
The Wimbledon champion also said that Rune reminded him of himself with his solid backhand and good defensive skills.
"Of course on the court, competitors. I played him only once last US Open, good battle, four sets. He has improved a lot, no doubt. I mean, he physically is a very fit guy. He's young, so not much to lose. Just swinging through the ball. I expect that also tomorrow. I saw him play today. Yesterday, it was just a very impressive game," the Serb said
"Kind of reminds me of myself, you know, solid backhand and very good defense and, you know, just competitive, every point leaving his heart and his legs out there on the court. It's nice to see that. I think he's very good for our sport in general," Djokovic added.
Holger Rune shared a picture of Novak Djokovic and himself as a youngster on his Instagram story
Holger Rune shared a picture of Novak Djokovic and himself in his younger days on Instagram.
Hoy tendremos una final ATP Masters 1000 entre estos dos 😂
#RolexParisMasters | 📸 via IG/holgerrune https://t.co/odNBBErt0E
Rune and Djokovic last met in the first round of last year's US Open, with the Serb winning 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-1. Both players are in good form at present and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top and wins the Paris Masters.