When it comes to the Nitto ATP Finals, Casper Ruud rarely brings anything below his best.
The Norwegian on Monday upset Carlos Alcaraz 6-1, 7-5 to register a huge early shock at the prestigious season finale in Turin. Ruud, who reached the championship match on his previous Nitto ATP Finals appearance in 2022, expertly capitalised on a lacklustre performance from the third-seeded Alcaraz to seal an 86-minute victory inside Inalpi Arena.
“it’s only one match, but it’s definitely one of the best wins of the season for me,” said Ruud. “In terms of who I’m playing, his level, his ranking and all this stuff. I feel very happy of course. I think we will see Carlos play better tennis than he did today, but I took care of my chances.
“I have not been [full of] confidence in the past weeks or months, so it was a great win for me and hopefully I can build on it, and I would like to get some more wins while I am in Turin.”
Although Alcaraz appeared below his physical best during Monday’s encounter, Ruud looked transformed from the player who entered the match having registered just two wins since the US Open. The 25-year-old struck the ball cleanly off both wings and showed few signs of nerves in serving out for his first Lexus ATP Head2Head win in five attempts against Alcaraz.
The early signs were good for Ruud as he began his third Nitto ATP Finals campaign. The No. 7 in the PIF ATP Rankings reeled off five consecutive games from 1-1 en route to the first set, although he was given substantial assistance by 15 unforced errors from the out-of-sorts Alcaraz.
Even when the Spaniard did begin to find his range in the second set, his comeback bid was undermined by his own inconsistency. Despite forging a 5-2 lead, Alcaraz was unable to close out and Ruud roared back with another streak of five games to seal his 50th tour-level win of 2024.
Ruud will next seek to earn a second win on Wednesday, when he will face either Alexander Zverev or Andrey Rublev in John Newcombe Group. Monday’s defeat is an early blow to Alcaraz’s hopes of reaching the semi-finals in Turin for the second consecutive year, but the Spaniard will hope to raise his game for his next match as he chases his fifth tour-level title of the season.
More to follow…