Holger Rune has won his first match at the US Open since 2022, but he was not happy about everything.
Rune lost in the first round of Wimbledon, and was looking for his first Grand Slam win since Roland Garros.
The Dane had an interesting North American hard court swing, including Rune being coached by Andre Agassi.
Despite a seemingly straightforward first round win at the US Open, Rune has revealed that he was actually a bit irritated by something his opponent, Botic van de Zandschulp, did.
Photo by Al Bello/Getty ImagesHolger Rune annoyed by what Botic van de Zandschulp did during their match at the US Open
The US Open is by far Rune’s worst performing Grand Slam tournament, and he had only won one match at the New York major before 2025.
Rune has now made that two wins after his 6-3 7-6(4) 7-6(2) victory over Van de Zandschulp, the player who beat Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open last year.
While Grand Slam tournaments are often the biggest motivation for tennis players, Rune revealed that Van de Zandschulp actually did something during the match that fuelled him even more.
When speaking on court to the US Open Radio, Rune claimed that the Dutchman fist pumped in his face, something he suggested he was not happy about.
“He made it a little bit personal,” said Rune. “He made a fist pump right in my face so I know how he behaves when he’s a little bit stressed so it’s okay. I’m not afraid of that, I just turned it into fuel.”
Rune to US Open Radio after beating van de Zandschulp:
“He made it a little bit personal. He made a fist pump right in my face so I know how he behaves when he’s a little bit stressed so it’s okay. I’m not afraid of that, I just turned it into fuel.” pic.twitter.com/x7O1FJEJs1
— Gill Gross 🌆 (@Gill_Gross) August 25, 2025
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Why Holger Rune could be at risk of another early US Open exit
Rune is the 11th seed at the US Open this year, but he could be under a lot of pressure ahead of his second round match.
That match is against German qualifier Jan-Lennard Struff, who is currently the world number 144.
Despite the big disparity in their respective rankings, Struff has been ranked as high as world number 21 and won his only previous meeting with Rune.
Not only did Struff beat Rune, but he only dropped two games in their match on the Munich clay last year.
Rune will now look to achieve two things that he has never done before, beat Struff and win back-to-back matches at the US Open for the first time.