Denmark’s Holger Rune has revealed that he was feeling unwell heading into his quarter-final clash with Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon.
The world No.8 fell in straight sets to Alcaraz in what was his first-ever last-eight encounter at SW19. Rune matched his opponent early on but towards the closing stages, he was unable to tame the Spaniard. It is the second time he has lost to Alcaraz on the Tour after their meeting at the 2021 Next Gen Finals.
Addressing the media following his defeat, Rune confirmed that he was not feeling at his best when he woke up this morning but refused to share the exact details about what the issue is. He has endured tough battles in his two previous matches at Wimbledon. In the third round, he edged out Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in five sets before going on to beat Grigor Dimitrov in four.
“I’m a little bit disappointed,” said Rune. “I didn’t feel the best in today’s match, but I did my best not to disappoint the crowd. I tried to fight until the end.”
“I didn’t feel as I felt the other days when I woke up this morning. I had to do my best and see if I had a chance.”
When asked to elaborate further, the 20-year-old said he ‘felt bad’ as soon as he woke up and continued to feel that way in his practice session. Although interestingly he added that he felt the same in Paris last year but things ‘went well.’ It was unclear if he was referring to the French Open where he reached the quarter-finals or the Paris Masters where he won the biggest title of his career so far.
“I did my best in all the circumstances. I fought till the end. He played a good match. I could have played better, I think. It’s a part of it. I just have to move on,” Rune commented.
Although there are still positives that the rising star can take. Until this year, he had never won a Tour match on the grass. Over the past month, he has achieved seven wins, including the three recorded at Queen’s.
“It’s positive, for sure,” he said.
“I’ve learned that no matter what the circumstances are, I have to commit fully to my game. I don’t think I did 100% today (against Alcaraz). I let him take advantage of I think too many points.” Rune later added.
There will be little time to rest for the youngster who is scheduled to compete in next week’s Hopman Cup alongside Clara Tauson.
