Rune Surprises Alcaraz and Wins Barcelona Tournament

Holger Rune capped off a strong week in Barcelona by defeating Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday with a score of 7-6, 6-2. Although the Spaniard was physically hampered, Rune played solid tennis throughout the week and succeeds Casper Ruud as the tournament champion.

In a post-match interview, he said he drew inspiration from Novak Djokovic’s Olympic final against Alcaraz in 2024: “I asked myself what Novak did to beat him. I imagined playing the Olympic final.

An incredible match. I told myself I’d try to play in that style.”

Thanks to this week’s performance, the Dane will return to the ATP Top 10 in next week’s rankings, landing at No. 9. He claims his fifth career title, his first in two years.

Meanwhile, Alcaraz loses his No. 2 world ranking to Alexander Zverev, who won the Munich tournament on Sunday.