Casper Ruud opens up about US Open ‘sting’ and states Carlos Alcaraz will be ‘the’ player to beat for a long time

Shahida Jacobs
US Open finalists Carlos Alcaraz and Casper Ruud

Casper Ruud made a winning US Open return on Monday as he held off Emilio Nava in the opening round but he admitted that returning to Flushing Meadows evoked a variety of emotions.

American qualifier Nava gave as good as he got for most of the three-hour encounter, but Ruud’s class eventually told as he won 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) to get his campaign at the season-ending Grand Slam up and running.

The win was the Norwegian’s first at Flushing Meadows since he lost the US Open final to Carlos Alcaraz last year and although the memories are somewhat painful, he hopes it will push him to greater heights.

“It was amazing at the time, and then coming back here, this year was a little more emotional than I thought, because when I came back to Roland Garros this year, I felt nerves and I didn’t have that many days on-site before the tournament started,” Ruud, who faces Zhang Zhizhen in the second round, explained.

“I was here for a week now and first day I arrived I was just kind of felt like yesterday in the way we were here last year.

“Walking into the locker room, I wish I could have seen my name on the champions wall except for his, obviously. Since it was the final at least feel like I was closest to win out of the three finals that I reached.

“It stings a little more but you can also use it as motivation to one day lift the trophy. That’s high words of course and high goals. That’s still my dream, still my biggest goal in my career to win a Grand Slam.

“I think I proved to myself yesterday that I can do better than I expect of myself sometimes. Every year I come back here at the US Open I will know that I reached a final, I was close at some point or before, and that will always be motivating in a way.”

Alcaraz defeated Ruud 6–4, 2–6, 7–6 (7–1), 6–3 in last year’s showpiece match and the Spaniard went on to become the youngest world No 1.

The 20-year-old’s star has continued to shine brightly this year as he has already won six titles, including the Wimbledon title courtesy of a five-set win over tennis great Novak Djokovic.

Ruud was asked about Alcaraz’s astonishing rise and replied: “It’s gone fast, you know, from just, you know, young teenager to best player in the world, it’s quite a rise, and the timeline he’s done it in is really, really impressive.

“I remember seeing him for the first time live I think was maybe Acapulco in 2021, could be earlier, but, you know, he was even younger and more inexperienced. I remember talking to his coach Juanki [Juan Carlos Ferrero], and, you know, congratulating him for winning a bunch of challengers that I had done in the past, and he was awarded I believe a wildcard to the tournament which was very deserved.

“Then Juanki is very humble and he said, ‘Thank you but now let’s see. This is a different level. We are going to have to expect a couple more losses now’.”

He added: When I saw him there the first time I wouldn’t imagine that, you know, a year and a half later we would play a Grand Slam final because he was just so young, and, yeah, he had great potential, but at least from what I saw back then, was a little unorganised. Then a couple months later he beat me, me kicked my ass in Marbella in a tournament.

“Just from Acapulco 2021 until I played him it’s not a long time, and he just, not going to say became a much better player but he was just two different players there at least.

“From there I just realised this guy is going to be really good and kind of changed my perception from one day to the other, in a way, because I think it was only couple weeks or a month or month and a half between the two times that I saw him for the first time and played him for the first time.

“He impressed me, impressed everyone, and he will be probably ‘the’ player to beat for a long time.”

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