Alejandro Davidovich Fokina draws on the crowd in Holger Rune upset

ATP Tour

James Richardson
May 1, 2023

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina took a boost from the home crowd that got behind him during his 7-6 (1), 5-7, 7-6 (5) victory over Holger Rune at the Madrid Open.

Davidovich Fokina was already the crowd favourite but when Rune had the audacity to rub away a mark on the clay during a debate about a line-call the extra man really came into effect.

Rune had grown frustrated by a long discussion between Davidovich Fokina and match officials following a call made by the FoxTenn line calling system.

Hawkeye showed the ball landing out but the technology is not at the disposal of match officials for this tournament.

Rune insists that there was nothing unsporting about his act saying that he was growing frustrated and wanted to get on with the match.

He was then subjected to constant heckling from the crowd but Rune shrugged it off as just one of those things.

“I really just wanted to play tennis and not discuss a brand for ten minutes,” Rune told TV2 about the line-calling system.

“It is Hawkeye (FoxTenn) who decides whether the ball is in or out, so there is not much to do, but again – I just want to play tennis.”

Rune insisted that he wasn’t too bothered by the vociferous crowd reaction which at points required the chair umpire to implore the fans to settle down.

“It’s part of the game,” Rune added.

“He is a home player. Like I said, I just want to play tennis, but he spent a lot of time discussing that brand (line call) at first. That’s the way it is.”

Meanwhile the hometown hero says that the crowd was a great lift for him and kept him going through what proved a tough match.

“When that happened, the crowd, the people, were more full with me,” said Davdovich Fokina.

“I felt their energy and I was like, ‘I don’t want to go home. I want to win this game. It doesn’t matter if I’m cramping or if I have a lot of tension, but I want to win.’

“Mentally and physically it was very hard,” Davidovich Fokina said

“Rune is a very good player. It was always tough games and we had to stay focussed on every service, because you never know when you [can] have the break point.

“I had my chances in the third set too, but I had a lot of tension and I was a little bit anxious to finish the point.

“But I did well and I’m very happy.”

Davidovich Fokina will meet Borna Coric in the last 16 in Madrid.

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina Holger Rune