Ruud: "Winning this title on the Rafa Nadal Court makes it even more special".

Guillaume Nonque

le 21/04/2024 à 18h04

2 min to read

Barcelone Nadal Ruud Tsitsipas

Casper Ruud clinched the biggest title of his career on Sunday, beating Stefanos Tsitsipas (7-5, 6-3) in the final on Barcelona clay (ATP 500) - revenge for his Monte-Carlo final defeat by the Greek last week. The Norwegian was obviously delighted after the match, especially as he achieved this performance on a court named after his idol: Rafael Nadal.

Casper Ruud: "In Monte Carlo, I was always going backwards, too far from my baseline. Stefanos had too much time to control the game.

Today (Sunday) I had a complicated start, I was broken straight away, so it wasn't the best start. But I managed to settle into the match and get my break back. Then I went on to break him at the end of the 1st set, which was huge.

It's been a long two weeks for both of us. At some point, fatigue set in, even though we were both fit enough to play today. Winning the first heat was very important. We knew that whoever won the first set would have a big advantage.

Yes, we've made some tactical changes this season and they're paying off (he's much more attack-minded). It's been a long wait (for this title), with a lot of finals I've lost. It was difficult and a bit disappointing, of course. But every time you reach the final, it's more or less a good week, so you can't be too hard on yourself.

This one's been a long time coming. Super happy to be able to do it here in Barcelona, in front of a packed stadium. And on the Rafa Nadal Court, which is special for me because I followed him all through my childhood. I came here as a 13-year-old boy to watch him play. It's a great feeling."