Holger Rune is battling away in Cincinnati after last year’s tournament saw him retire in his first match.
It’s not been totally straightforward for Holger Rune this summer, with coaching changes, injuries, and some otherwise sub-par form tarnishing his shimmer.
Tipped for stardom, Rune has been ranked as high as fourth but has recently fallen well outside the top 10.
Beaten by Alexander Zverev in Montreal last week, Rune is now in the mid-west with both new form and importantly a new coach.
His Cincinnati opener saw the Dane come back to defeat Matteo Berrettini to set up a tie with the in-form Swedish Open champion, Nuno Borges.
After initially parting ways with Boris Becker in February, Rune joined up with Kenneth Carlsen, and re-appointed Patrick Mouratoglou to be his full-time coaches.
Rune’s recent break-up with Mouratoglou however saw the Frenchman become the latest to jump back off this slightly ridiculous coaching carousel.
Holger Rune heaps praise on his new coach
With the ambition of a deep run in Cincinnati ahead of the US Open, Rune has seemingly recovered from the injury which sidelined him from the Paris Olympics.
Thrilled to have got through his tough opening match, he was quizzed on what aspects he appreciates about his new coach.
“It’s a tricky question,” he admitted. “Sometimes you are looking for too much, I think. Sometimes you just need someone who knows you. Kenneth he knows me very well. He is very good to adjust. He has been very good. He knew me since I was very young.
“Together with Lars he was helping me when I was 12 or 13 in the national club in Denmark. He was a former player, top 50 in the world, he has experience and knows how it feels to be in there when it’s a tough situation and momentum is with you or not with you. For me it’s great. He’s a great guy, super disciplined. He’s a super coach.”
Positive about the change and likely relieved to be through the Mouratoglou saga, Rune’s movement and power seems to be operating near his best, with this new era hopefully set to elevate him back to the top 10.
New coaching stability will allow Holger Rune to shoot back up the ATP rankings
The constant upheaval, the frequent Instagram posts updating us of his coaching status – it ultimately started to feel like a messy rom-com.
Naturally if a player is experiencing numerous off-court changes and disagreements, it is going to taint their output on the court.
Rune’s Masters 1000 victory in Paris towards the end of 2022 still remains his best string of results and performances to date, but a new coaching set-up with fewer twists is the best step to make to recreate that form.
Having only ever reached the quarter-finals of a major, Rune has not managed to take that step that the top five regularly do.
With the US Open the grand slam event he’s historically performed worst at, only time will tell if Rune can improve on his poor previous showings, however with his new team around him, he should be able to get back up there.
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