"Told myself I was going to come back and I did" - Holger Rune on flipping the script at Wimbledon with never-before achieved feat in 3R
Holger Rune recently opened up about his remarkable comeback victory in the third round of the 2024 Wimbledon Open. This was Rune's first time winning a match after being two sets down.
Rune is seeded 15th at the grasscourt Major and kicked off his campaign by defeating Kwon Soon-woo 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 and Thiago Seyboth Wild 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 in the first and second rounds respectively.
In the third round, the former World No.4 overcame qualifier Quentin Halys 1-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(4), 6-1 to secure his spot in the fourth round where he will face seven-time Wimbledon Championships winner, Novak Djokovic.
At the beginning of his match against Halys, Rune encountered significant challenges. Playing on Court 18, the Frenchman quickly took the lead by winning the first two sets, but a sudden downpour forced the match to be moved to Court 1 which ultimately worked in the Dane's favor.
After the shift, Holger Rune managed to refocus and turn the match around, winning three consecutive sets to secure the victory and advance to the fourth round. This was the first time in his career that the World No.15 had won a match after losing the first two sets.
During the post-match press conference following his win over Quentin Halys, Holger Rune stated that while he did not attribute his win to the court change, playing on Court 1 had a positive influence on his game.
Rune stated that when he was down in the first two sets, he had motivated himself by telling himself this would be the first time he was going to win by making such a comeback.
"I wouldn't say that my comeback came from moving to Court 1, but I was happy that they played our match there. It's a great court. The conditions change completely. I was able to raise my level and improve my tennis when I needed to. I told myself that today was going to be the first day I was going to come back from 0-2 and I did. I'm extremely happy,: Holger Rune said (via Punto de Break).
Holger Rune also revealed that he does not care much about the court he is scheduled to play on, but revealed that he prefers Court 1 to Court 18 as he feels it is much closer to 'the energy' of Centre Court.
"I don't usually pay attention to which court I'm put on, but I was a little surprised to be put on Court 18, but that's just the way it is. They moved us to Court 1 and I liked that because the energy is similar to that on Central. I was close to losing, but I was glad I was able to win," he added.
Holger Rune will face Novak Djokovic in Wimbledon 2024 4R
Holger Rune will take on second seed Novak Djokovic in the fourth round of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships.
Djokovic began his campaign at the grasscourt Major by convincingly defeating qualifier Vit Kopriva 6-1, 6-2, 6-2, and wildcard Jacob Fearnley 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 in the first and second rounds, respectively. The Serb then triumphed over Alexei Popyrin 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(3) to secure his spot in the fourth round.
Holger Rune and Novak Djokovic have met five times on the ATP Tour, with the Serb winning three of their encounters. Their most recent meeting took place during the round-robin phase of the 2023 ATP Finals, where Djokovic claimed a hard-fought victory with a score of 7-6(4), 6-7(1), 6-3, the Serb then going on to clinch the title by defeating Jannik Sinner 6-3, 6-3 in the final.