PARIS: It could be an either-or situation for Casper Ruud in the French Open final on Sunday. Own the evening or be overwhelmed by it.
The 23-year-old goes up against his idol – the 13-time champion Rafael Nadal – in what’ll be the pair’s first tango. Ruud, who is in his first major final, has watched, not surprisingly, all 13 of the Spaniard’s stunning triumphs at Roland Garros. He even revealed the opponents the Spaniard overcame, stopping just short of reciting scorelines.
The Norwegian, who has stacked up a number of firsts for his country this week, trains at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, where the duo have stood across the net from each other several times to play practice sets.
“He has always beaten me, there have been some close sets like 7-6, 7-5, but it always goes in his favor,” Ruud said, before adding, “It’s because we are playing in the academy and I want to be nice to him. You are the guest, you need to be a nice guest.”
“He’s playing for his 22nd Grand Slam. I’m playing for my first. I’m the underdog and we will just enjoy the moment,” the 23-year-old said.
Ruud, an eight-time Tour-level titlist, could use Sunday’s dank conditions to his advantage. The roof will likely be rolled over Court Philippe Chatrier, recreating the humid setting the Spaniard didn’t delight in in his truncated semifinal against Alexander Zverev, where he appeared spent at the half-way mark of the 3-hours in the middle.
“The ball was super big and difficult to create spin on,” Nadal said of his outing on Friday. “The conditions were not ideal for me. That’s why I was not able to create the damage. In these heavy conditions, my ball is not creating the impact that it normally creates. My ball was not bouncing as usual.”
Nadal, favoured to take his Grand Slam tally to 22, wasn’t quite as electric around the court in the last-four exchange as he was in the quarterfinal against the world No.1 Novak Djokovic. The heavier conditions along with the manner in which the German attacked the ball, allowing Nadal little time, should give the Ruud camp something to think about.
However Sunday turns up wet, windy or humid Nadal will compete. “It’s about how much you enjoy doing what you are doing,” he said. “I am healthy enough to play, I like the competition, I like to play in the best stadiums of the world and at my age still feel competitive. It means a lot to me.”
Ruud doesn’t have Zverev’s serve and there’s plenty of top-spin coming off his racket on both flanks, but he can step on the pedal and make his opponent uncomfortable, like he has shown on hard courts these past six months,
Marin Cilic, whose charge to the semifinals was stopped by Ruud late on Friday, left his final predictions at ‘interesting match’.
“Casper is a little bit like a righty Rafa,” the amiable Croat said. “He also stands far back on the return. Hits a lot of those loopy balls, has an incredible forehand, and is also quite cool on the court.”
Nadal will fight to the finish even if he’s unable to play his best tennis, that’s a given for as long as the sun rises in the east. It’ll be down to Ruud then, should he embrace the stage, he could direct the course of the match. The result is a different ball game.
The 23-year-old goes up against his idol – the 13-time champion Rafael Nadal – in what’ll be the pair’s first tango. Ruud, who is in his first major final, has watched, not surprisingly, all 13 of the Spaniard’s stunning triumphs at Roland Garros. He even revealed the opponents the Spaniard overcame, stopping just short of reciting scorelines.
The Norwegian, who has stacked up a number of firsts for his country this week, trains at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, where the duo have stood across the net from each other several times to play practice sets.
“He has always beaten me, there have been some close sets like 7-6, 7-5, but it always goes in his favor,” Ruud said, before adding, “It’s because we are playing in the academy and I want to be nice to him. You are the guest, you need to be a nice guest.”
“He’s playing for his 22nd Grand Slam. I’m playing for my first. I’m the underdog and we will just enjoy the moment,” the 23-year-old said.
Ruud, an eight-time Tour-level titlist, could use Sunday’s dank conditions to his advantage. The roof will likely be rolled over Court Philippe Chatrier, recreating the humid setting the Spaniard didn’t delight in in his truncated semifinal against Alexander Zverev, where he appeared spent at the half-way mark of the 3-hours in the middle.
“The ball was super big and difficult to create spin on,” Nadal said of his outing on Friday. “The conditions were not ideal for me. That’s why I was not able to create the damage. In these heavy conditions, my ball is not creating the impact that it normally creates. My ball was not bouncing as usual.”
Nadal, favoured to take his Grand Slam tally to 22, wasn’t quite as electric around the court in the last-four exchange as he was in the quarterfinal against the world No.1 Novak Djokovic. The heavier conditions along with the manner in which the German attacked the ball, allowing Nadal little time, should give the Ruud camp something to think about.
However Sunday turns up wet, windy or humid Nadal will compete. “It’s about how much you enjoy doing what you are doing,” he said. “I am healthy enough to play, I like the competition, I like to play in the best stadiums of the world and at my age still feel competitive. It means a lot to me.”
Ruud doesn’t have Zverev’s serve and there’s plenty of top-spin coming off his racket on both flanks, but he can step on the pedal and make his opponent uncomfortable, like he has shown on hard courts these past six months,
Marin Cilic, whose charge to the semifinals was stopped by Ruud late on Friday, left his final predictions at ‘interesting match’.
“Casper is a little bit like a righty Rafa,” the amiable Croat said. “He also stands far back on the return. Hits a lot of those loopy balls, has an incredible forehand, and is also quite cool on the court.”
Nadal will fight to the finish even if he’s unable to play his best tennis, that’s a given for as long as the sun rises in the east. It’ll be down to Ruud then, should he embrace the stage, he could direct the course of the match. The result is a different ball game.
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