“It was about getting that first serve, and if I could save that match point I knew that I could put on pressure,” Holger Rune said after his victory over Kei Nishikori at the Japan Open. Despite losing the first set 3-6, Rune fought back to claim the second and third sets within two hours and sixteen minutes! But his QF victory came with a price. Not only did he receive a time violation in the deciding set, but he also had an unpleasant interaction with the crowd. However, as per the former pro, Prakash Amritraj, it might have had a silver lining after all!

After enduring a brutal loss to Grigor Dimitrov in the finals in Brisbane, Holger Rune is now one step closer to making his second final in the season. The World No. 14 is leaving no stone unturned, as he hit 39 winners against the two-time Tokyo Champion in the quarterfinal. After leveling up with Nishikori in the third set (2-2), the 21-year-old expressed his enthusiasm with a loud scream, and after his victory, he held his finger to his ear, displaying his intention to hear loud cheers from the crowd, drawing criticism from fans. But fans are no strangers to Rune’s controversial actions on-court. 

Even during the QF match against Jannik Sinner in the Monte Carlo, a similar scenario unfolded. However, Prakash Amritraj, who appeared in the Tennis Channel Live Podcast’s September 30th episode, had a different opinion. While recapping Rune’s performance against Nishikori, he stated, “This was an exceptional match, one that Holger needed a bit….”

Further referring to the second set of the match, Amritraj added, “It was the second set…where Holger made his move, he was able to get the break. Kind of getting into it with the crowd as well. Sometimes he needs a little bit of animosity from the court and uses it to fire himself up, match point there, Nishikori. Rune fires a big serve there, fighting for his life here.” 

Appreciating Rune who made it to no. 4 in the world rankings last year, Amritraj said, “And when he is finally fighting for his life, you genuinely see him attacking. That is when he is playing his best tennis. That is what got him into the top five.” He further added how it also drove him to win his first Paris Masters 1000 title in 2022. However, for Rune, the victory against Nishikori did not come easy. After the clash, he expressed the “challenging” factors of the match!

Holger Rune’s take on his “challenging” match in the Japan Open

Holger Rune, the highest-ranked Danish player, is all set to face Arthur Fils in his sixth semifinal appearance on-court this season. However, before that, in a post-match interview, Rune expressed, “His (Nishikori) ball striking and feel on the ball was incredible and it was very challenging for me. I had to find another gear to be able to beat him and it was almost not enough, but I managed to find that level and find that fighting spirit to beat him.” 

Moreover, Holger Rune also criticized the ATP over its shot clock system (having 25 25-second time limit for the server to serve). Failing to abide by the rules himself, Rune addressed the system to be a “joke.” Perhaps referring to Carlos Alcaraz’s heated debate with the chair umpire on the same issue during the Spaniard’s China Open match, Rune further added, “I’ve seen other players getting time violation. It’s super stressful like, basically if you finish a volley on top of the net, you have like basically 19 seconds to get back.”

However, Holger Rune’s triumph against Nishikori demonstrated that, for him, adversity can be a potent catalyst. And fans are now waiting for more of his electrifying matches!