Norwegian tennis player Casper Ruud, 22, was one of the main stars of the ATP Finals, which ended last Sunday in Turin. For fans, he is interesting not only as a semi-finalist of the prestigious ATP Finals 2021 tournament, but also as a rival of Russian tennis players in the upcoming Davis Cup match, which will take place in a few days, on November 26. -27, in Oslo. Ruud is a bright young talent of world tennis, who is rapidly breaking into the elite. This season, he has already won 5 ATP titles and took 4th place in the final ranking, thereby qualifying for the semi-finals of the final tournament. His performance in Turin confirmed the rapid progress of the Norwegian, who two years ago was only 27th in the world ranking. Now fans will have the opportunity to see Ruud in action as part of the Norwegian national team in the Davis Cup match against Russia. Face-to-face meetings between the young world tennis star and Russian players always arouse great interest, and the upcoming confrontation will be no exception. Spectators will be treated to an exciting sporting event with the participation of one of the most promising tennis players of our time.
We are often outraged when we hear from ordinary foreigners a set of traditional ideas about Ukraine: Chernobyl, the Klitschko brothers, Shevchenko (probably not the same as Kobzar). At the same time, what do we know about Norway? Fjords, trolls, Erling Holland, some will remember Henrik Ibsen. Okay, this is not a very impressive list. Biathlon fans will name Björndalen, the Boe brothers and Tura Berger. Football fans, in addition to Haaland, will remember Martin Odegaard, the more experienced will remember Jon Arne Riise. What about tennis players? It is not even necessary to look for the latter, but the whole history of Norwegian men's tennis revolves around one family - the Ruud family. If you type Christian Ruud into a YouTube search, you will be greeted with several videos of the match against Boris Becker at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. "Probably the worst Becker match I have ever seen. Nevertheless, he even managed to win..." reads the comments. The 20-year-old Norwegian was leading 2:1 in sets, broke in the fourth game and still ended up losing to the German world number five.
They had to wait more than six years for the main victory in life: on December 22, 1998, the Ruud couple had a son. "My wife had a very difficult birth, she had to have a caesarean section and complications began. We went through a lot, spent the whole vacation in the hospital. Our family won this victory and now I am happy that my wife and Kasper are with me," the father recalls. Christian rode the dopamine wave and in a few weeks defeated the third number one in the ranking, Alex Corretja, at the Australian Open. Ruud had a fairly solid 1999 season, secured a place in the ATP top 50 and even managed to train with a young man named Roger Federer, who, at just under eighteen, began to storm the tennis elite. In 2001, Ruud Sr. retired. He will now spend more time with his son, who seems to be particularly interested in sport and tennis.
From Oslo, the Norwegian capital, the Snoroya peninsula in the Oslofjord is accessible by car or boat, a distance of 10 kilometers. There is a sports complex with soccer fields, tennis courts and a skate park. It is here, at the Snarøya Tennis Club, that Kasper Ruud, 4 years old, took his first steps in tennis. On June 5, 2005, two days after his 19th birthday, Rafael Nadal won the French Open for the first time. After watching Nadal's victory on television, Kasper, who was hesitating between tennis, golf and football, chose tennis. Ruud began to travel regularly to participate in junior tournaments in Europe, combining this with intensive training at home. On weekends, his father Christian would organize practice matches for Kasper, even introducing a "draw" system: if Kasper lost by a significant score, he would pay his father a fine, and for each match won, he would receive a cash reward.
Although Norway is the 15th largest oil producer in the world, this does not affect the development of tennis in the country. According to Kasper himself, the Norwegian Tennis Federation does not have enough funds to provide tennis players with all the necessary conditions for training and recovery. Norwegian Eurosport commentator Christer Franke notes that in Norway, tennis ranks only 10th in popularity, behind winter sports, football, handball and even athletics.
Kasper Ruud, who became Norway's youngest champion at the age of 15, decided to continue his development in Spain. For the next three years, he trained at the Juan Carlos Ferrero academy in Alicante. Despite his early successes, Ruud cannot be called a typical junior "star". The discreet, white-haired Norwegian has never won a senior Grand Slam. His rise to number one in the junior rankings in 2016 was the result of consistent play, not just one successful tournament. His career shows a trend of gradual progress.
Ruud's first major professional success was his victory at the 2016 Seville Challenger, where he started from qualifying and won 7 matches in a row. This triumph allowed him to rise to the third hundred of the ATP rankings and attracted the attention of the tennis community. At the beginning of the following season, after receiving a wild card, Ruud reached the semi-finals of the ATP 500 tournament in Rio de Janeiro, with a 6:2 and 4:2 lead over Pablo Carreno Busta, but failed to close out the match. This defeat marked his career for a long time - it did not allow him to get closer to the top 100 in those years. Ruud had to flounder on the Challengers until he reached the coveted hundred of the best players in the world in 2019 as a resident of Rafael Nadal's academy.
Despite the fact that in junior tennis Casper Ruud showed good results on hard courts and clay, in his professional career the Norwegian relied on the floor game. It was this choice that led Kasper Ruud at his idol Rafael Nadal's academy in Mallorca. Finding himself stagnant during the transition from Challengers to ATP tournaments, Ruud realized the need for new challenges and extra motivation. The Nadal Academy offered Kasper this opportunity. There, he had the chance to work with Toni Nadal and periodically train with Rafa himself.
Kasper speaks with admiration about the intensity and rhythm of Nadal's game in training and strives to replicate this in his own game. In addition, Rafa has personally given the young Norwegian advice and guidance. Off the court, Nadal has become friends with the introverted Casper: they play golf together and support each other in important victories. It was the cooperation with the Nadal Academy that helped Ruud take a decisive step in his career and enter the top 100 of the world rankings. Clay court tournaments have become a key area for him, where he demonstrates his high potential.
In 2024, Casper Ruud, known for his ability to control his emotions and not break his rackets, said he would like to spend his entire career without it. He named only two top players who have achieved such a feat: Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Ruud has had an impressive rise to the top of the tennis world. In 2019, he entered the top 100 and in 2020, he won his first ATP title in Buenos Aires, setting a new Norwegian national record. In 2023, Ruud was in the prime of his life. He reached the semifinals of two Masters events and then won three ATP 250 tournaments in a row. This allowed him to enter the top 10 of the ATP rankings for the first time in his career at the age of 24, becoming the youngest in this elite group. Legendary Patrick McEnroe even expects Ruud to win Roland Garros within the next three years.
Despite these successes, Ruud has yet to win a Grand Slam, and some skeptics believe that all his achievements have been limited to less prestigious competitions. Ruud himself jokes that he wouldn't mind trading his ATP 250 titles for three triumphs at the majors, like Novak Djokovic.
It is absolutely true to note the tension between Kasper Ruud and Nick Kyrgios in recent years. This is truly a duo of extremely brilliant and contrasting players in modern men's tennis. Their first open conflict occurred in 2019 at a tournament in Rome, when Kyrgios' shocking behavior led to his disqualification, and Ruud was able to go this far for the first time at the Masters. Since then, a verbal skirmish ensued between them, in which Kyrgios constantly took the initiative, criticizing the Norwegian's playing style and achievements. However, despite Kyrgios' loud attacks, Ruud showed restraint and calm, even if he still couldn't stand it at some point and responded with his characteristic restraint. This contrast in characters and dialogue styles became one of the main driving forces behind their confrontation. It's clear that Ruud has improved a lot recently, winning three trophies in three weeks while Kyrgios has spent most of the season on the sidelines. This difference in results arguably exacerbates their conflict, with Kyrgios starting to look less and less convincing in the face of his opponent's impressive progress. The Ruud-Kyrgios showdown has become one of the most memorable in modern tennis, and its aftermath is sure to attract plenty of attention from fans and pundits alike.