Why Casper Ruud Is a Threat For Roland Garros
Norwegian tennis star Casper Ruud is winning the biggest titles for the first time. The former World No. 2 had developed a solid reputation for being a clay-court specialist in the past few years. However, he has not won any of the big ATP titles recently. Until the 2024 season, the Norwegian player had only won ATP 250 tournaments.
However, things have changed over the past 18 months. With Roland Garros fast approaching, the right-hander should be considered one of the favorites for the clay slam. Here are three reasons why we believe the former World No.2 can become a surprise winner at this year’s French Open.
1. Consistency
If there is one player who has shown consistency on clay in the past couple of seasons, it is Ruud. The Norwegian reached his first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros in 2022. However, he was beaten convincingly by Rafael Nadal in straight sets. The 26-year-old came close to challenging Carlos Alcaraz for the year-end World No. 1 ranking in 2022 but eventually succumbed to his prowess.
In 2023, Ruud demonstrated his fine clay-court skills again, reaching his third Grand Slam final and the second at Roland Garros. This time, he was on the receiving end of a battering at the hands of Novak Djokovic. Many felt that the newly-ranked World No. 7 was just there to make up the numbers in this field. Although Rudd couldn’t do a hat trick of finals at Roland Garros, he reached the semifinals. Now, he is likely to reach the deep stages of Roland Garros again with his breakthrough win at the Madrid Open.
2. No Big 3 factor
As said previously, Ruud has lost two Roland Garros finals to Nadal and Djokovic, respectively. However, those two players are no longer in the conversation for the French Open. Nadal retired from the sport last year after Spain’s Davis Cup. On the other hand, Djokovic has not shown any kind of form recently. The Serb has not even won a single clay-court match this season.
With the factor of the “Big Three” no longer around, Ruud can use it to his advantage. After all, the two best players in the world today, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, are also under a cloud. Sinner is coming back from a three-month doping suspension at the Rome Masters. On the other hand, Alcaraz has been out of action since injuring himself in the Barcelona Open final last month.
3. Becoming a Big Player
Ruud always had a reputation for being someone who could only win ATP 250 events. However, he broke that streak last year. He reached his first Masters 1000 final at Monte Carlo last year, losing to Stefanos Tsitsipas. He reversed that result against the Greek at the Barcelona Open to win his first ATP 500 event. Now, he has won his first Masters 1000 event at the Madrid Open after beating Jack Draper.
Ruud is finally generating the ability that his rivals have. After all, he is a student of the Rafa Nadal Academy. The founder of that academy used to thrive in the big matches, and the Norwegian might finally be showing his potential on the big stages.
