\u201cMy aim is to win as many grand slams as possible and be No 1 in the world,\u201d Holger Rune says with cool assurance on a stinking hot day in Cincinnati. \u201cIt\u2019s very, very clear for me and it\u2019s always been like that since I was a child.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 22-year-old Dane is the world No 11 and he has reached the quarter-finals of Wimbledon<\/a> and, on two occasions, the French Open. As the US Open approaches, he has yet to make the last four of a grand slam but his bold ambition seems more concrete when his impressive record against the best two players in the world is remembered. Rune has played Carlos Alcaraz four times, winning twice, including a 7-6, 6-2 victory in their most recent encounter, four months ago in the final of the Barcelona Open. He has also beaten Jannik Sinner twice in their five matches against each other.<\/p>\n Rune was due to face Sinner again in the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open but, last Thursday, he suffered a straight-sets defeat against T\u00e9rence Atmane. The French qualifier, whose ATP tour record before Cincinnati featured just one win in five matches this year, described his tournament as \u201cpretty insane\u201d because, before dispatching Rune, he also knocked out the world No 4, Taylor Fritz.<\/p>\n But Rune\u2019s variable results against lesser players continue. \u201cMy problem is not beating those guys,\u201d he says of Alcaraz and Sinner. \u201cMy problem is being consistent in going deep in every tournament to get a chance to play them more often because I feel like that\u2019s where I raise my level. It\u2019s very clear that when Carlos and Jannik play each other they raise their level. You push each other like crazy and this is a very exciting element of the sport. So having a good head-to-head against them, and also in the beginning against Novak Djokovic, when he was on top, makes me know I can do it. It\u2019s just about delivering it consistently.\u201d<\/p>\n Rune, who is as friendly off-court as he can be intense and combustible in matches, says \u201cthere have been a few days where you\u2019re like: \u2018How is it going to be possible?\u2019 But I\u2019m so driven to find a way. I\u2019m always thinking: \u2018How can I achieve my goals? What can I do better?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n He explains that, with his coach Lars Christensen, \u201cwe are trying to work really hard, but also really smart, to improve and stay really consistent. But that\u2019s the most difficult part and basically only two players on tour right now are very consistent \u2013 Carlos and Jannik. Everybody else is losing early in tournaments here and there.\u201d<\/p>\n Holger Rune (right) after beating Carlos Alcaraz in the final of this year\u2019s Barcelona Open. \u2018He\u2019s always been a nice guy and we\u2019re good friends now.\u2019 Photograph: Bruna Casas\/Reuters<\/p>\n Rune is easy to interview and open to analysing his challenges \u2013 which he argues are primarily mental. \u201cIt starts with the brain, with knowing when you play well or, when you turn the match, why it happened so you can do it again and it doesn\u2019t just happen by coincidence. I\u2019m a good tennis player so of course I\u2019m going to have good weeks. But it\u2019s about trying to put them together \u2013 not just a few times but week after week.\u201d<\/p>\n As part of his new strategy Rune met with Andre Agassi last month. Agassi is a great former world No 1 who won each of the four grand slam tournaments and eight in total. The 55-year-old American is an unconventional and deep thinker<\/a> whose love-hate relationship with tennis could not dull his tactical acumen. It\u2019s an intriguing move by Rune. He is working again with Christensen, who coached him as a junior and at different stages of his senior career, but his five years on tour have been marked by constant tinkering.<\/p>\n Rune has also been coached by Patrick Mouratoglou, who worked successfully with Serena Williams, and Boris Becker, winner of six grand slams as a player. There is no suggestion that Agassi will become his coach and, instead, an informal relationship seems to be helping Rune. They worked together for three days in Washington DC and, since then, Agassi and Rune have spoken or messaged each other before or after his matches.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was my idea,\u201d Rune confirms. \u201cI reached out to him after the French Open and thought it would be really interesting to hear his point of view on my game. We spoke on the phone for a long time and decided to do a couple of days together in DC. He sees tennis in a very unique way and had some good info on my game. We had a long dinner and the way he explained things made it simple for me to see what I can do better.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s such a legend with a deep understanding of tennis and how to win. So for him to share that with me was amazing. We\u2019re still in touch and speak after my matches on the phone and it helps to hear his thoughts.\u201d<\/p>\n Does Agassi believe that Rune is a future grand slam winner? \u201cYes. He made that very clear. He knows all my goals and said they are very achievable. But it\u2019s more important to make it happen than just hearing it. Belief is the most important word. I believe I can do it and, I\u2019m sure, in time I\u2019ll make it.\u201d<\/p>\n Alcaraz was born six days after Rune, in May 2003, while Sinner is two years older at 24. The Spaniard has won five slams, the first the 2022 US Open<\/a>, and the Italian has four to his name, starting with last year\u2019s Australian Open<\/a>. \u201cCarlos is by far the one doing it the fastest. When Jannik won his first slam he was my age now \u2013 22. So I have a little more time to try and do the same. He\u2019s always been an amazing player. It\u2019s not like he just did something crazy all of a sudden. He was working very consistently, very hard. And then great things happen because he has the tennis and the physicality. So he shows that it\u2019s about trusting the process, believing, optimising and making it happen.\u201d<\/p>\n Jannik Sinner (right) and Rune at the Australian Open. Photograph: Andy Cheung\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Who is more difficult to beat \u2013 Sinner or Alcaraz? \u201cI always found it more comfortable playing Jannik because he\u2019s giving more rhythm, playing more the same shots. With Carlos there\u2019s so much variety. You give him one opportunity and he\u2019s going to either drop shot you or punch you down the line or something different. It\u2019s unpredictable which makes it more difficult. But Jannik\u2019s lower level is higher because Carlos sometimes can mis-hit some balls. But then I think Carlos\u2019s top game is a little bit higher than Jannik\u2019s so they\u2019re really equal.\u201d<\/p>\n Rune is friendly with both but particularly Alcaraz as, when they were 12, they became double partners<\/a> in a junior tournament and reached the semi-finals. \u201cHe\u2019s always been a nice guy,\u201d Rune says, \u201cand we\u2019re good friends now.\u201d<\/p>\n His defeat of Alcaraz in Barcelona deepened Rune\u2019s belief. \u201cObviously I had some nerves but I was excited to play that match. The first set was a big battle. I had a few set points at 5-4 but I won a big tie-break and then I got more and more momentum and had a great second set. Beating Carlos in the final was an amazing feeling. The only annoying thing was I wasn\u2019t consistently doing enough in the next tournament.\u201d<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend\u2019s action<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n His mother, Aneke, has followed every twist and turn. She is often at his side off-court and almost always in his box during matches. She sometimes looks in desperate need of another cigarette, as her desire to win seems to run as deep as her son\u2019s. Rune smiles at that observation. \u201cFor sure. It\u2019s been the whole project since I was six years old when I told her: \u2018I want to win grand slams and be No 1 in the world.\u2019 She was like: \u2018OK, I will try to do everything for you so that\u2019s possible.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Tennis remains an obscure sport in Denmark and he received little support from the national federation. \u201cMy mum luckily has her own [water cooler] company so this made it a little easier for her to take time off and travel. But tennis is very expensive and on the lower level you had to pay for your hotel and food. My mum and dad sacrificed their time, their money, their life for me. I feel like I owe them everything.\u201d<\/p>\n How has his mother helped him most? \u201cWith my mindset. She\u2019s basically the person that helped me get the killer instinct. She\u2019s very demanding but in a good way and very supportive and very loving. I think this is what makes her a great parent \u2013 not just to be nice all the time but also to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n Life on tour can be hard and Rune says, almost casually, that he and other players receive death threats on social media \u201call the time. After every match you lose that, on paper, you should have won, it happens.\u201d<\/p>\n Rune celebrates beating Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia at the Australian Open in January. Photograph: Daniel Pockett\/Getty<\/p>\n The threats are made by \u201cpeople betting on the matches and it\u2019s just not nice. People threatening you and your family and talking very direct things is really uncomfortable. It\u2019s one thing that\u2019s really bad about social media \u2026 [and] it\u2019s dangerous in some ways.\u201d<\/p>\n Having reached the final at Indian Wells in March, where he lost to Jack Draper<\/a>, the rest of 2025 has been patchy. But who else has the potential to challenge the Alcaraz-Sinner duopoly? \u201cThat\u2019s a great question. I wouldn\u2019t have thought much about that. I want to see how Arthur Fils develops because he has a great forehand, great backhand, great physique.\u201d The 21-year-old Frenchman has withdrawn from the US Open with a stress fracture in his back. \u201cHe has many elements to his game and I\u2019m curious to see how he\u2019s going to do but otherwise I don\u2019t know for the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n