He is one of the young pearls of the ATP circuit. He is Holger Rune, a player with a very strong and marked personality and whose statements are listened to with attention by many people. On this occasion, the Dane was talking to Gio Journal about the “Big Three”: Novak, Rafa y Roger. The young man, who is in Montecarlo preparing to clinch his second Masters 1000 title, he had some nice words about each of them and confessed who he would have liked to play with before he retired. Does he get wet in the GOAT debate?
About your favorite player as a child
“First I was a fan of Rafa. He was number one back then. I had Rafa posters all over my room. Then I became a fan of Roger and then I was a fan of many players. To be more specific, I’m a fan of Verdasco’s forehand, Zverev’s backhand, Novak’s return, Roger’s movements, Rafa’s wrestling attitude, etc.”
Retired player who would you have liked to play with?
“Roger Federer. I trained with him at the 2019 Nitto Finals, but never played a match against him. He is the most elegant player I have ever seen on a tennis court, so I think I would be very inspired to play against him.”
Who is the greatest player of all time?
“This question is impossible for me to answer. Since I started being a fan of specific things in multiplayer, for me every player has something special that you can learn and admire.
Regarding the number of victories, for sure Novak, Rafa and Roger are the record holders and, in that sense, the best”.
Which female player would be the toughest to play against?
“Competition would be unfair, so I can’t answer the question. I’ve practiced with Serena. I love his clean strokes.”
Your dreams are still intact
“I dream big. Since I was 6 years old I wanted to become the best player in the world and win multiple Grand Slams and the Olympics. This dream hasn’t changed.”
On removing some rule of tennis
“I think that in the future there will have to be changes to keep the young audience interested and aware of television. Maybe shorter matches cutting a serve or not adding 40 all points, net serve could count as a serve, shorter breaks between points or something. And also make the viewers feel somehow closer to the players. I remember watching the first edition of Next-Gen, and compared to normal ATP matches, I felt very close to the players. I could really feel the nerves a lot more and it was exciting.”
