Holger Rune

Placed by the media in a Big Three of young hopefuls in world men’s tennis with Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, Holger Rune does not yet possess their consistency, even though he has been one of the most feared players on the circuit since he won the Rolex Paris Masters 2022 under the coaching of Patrick Mouratoglou, beating five Top 10 players in one week – a unique performance in the history of the ATP.

A beneficiary of the ChampSeed foundation, founded by Patrick Mouratoglou, since the age of 13, Rune trains regularly on the Academy‘s courts, whether or not he is coached by Mouratoglou himself, which has not been the case since July 2024. He has always had technicians from the Mouratoglou Academy on his staff.

Junior career: World No 1, Grand Slam title, Masters in his pocket

World No 1 in the junior category, the Dane very quickly showed that he had the soul of a future champion. In 2019, at the age of 16, two years ahead of schedule, he won the French Open boys title against the American Alex Kodat. At the end of the season, he made a name for himself by winning the Junior Masters against Harold Mayot of France, his second biggest title in this age category. Rune was also a sparring partner at the ATP Finals in 2019, where Stefanos Tsitsipas won under the supervision of Patrick Mouratoglou. In 2020, Rune officially became a professional player at the age of 17. By then, he had already won his first Challenger matches in Blois and Amersfoort (Netherlands).

ATP career: debut in 2020, WORLD NO 4 in 2023

Rune turned professional in 2020, winning his first Futures tournaments in Klosters, Valldoreix and Antayla. The following year, in June 2021, he won his first Challenger title in Biella. At the end of the year, he emerged from qualifying for the US Open and took a set off Novak Djokovic in the first round on Arthur-Ashe Stadium Court.

The Dane won his first ATP title in April 2022 in Munich, where he eliminated the world No 3, Alexander Zverev. His Grand Slam breakthrough came at Roland Garros in 2022. He dominated Denis Shapovalov, went through three more rounds and eliminated Stefanos Tsitsipas, the finalist from the year before and world No 4, in the last 16 before losing to Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals.

Rune ended the year with a stunning victory at the Rolex Paris Masters, defeating Novak Djokovic in the final and beating five Top 10 players in one week. He was a reserve at the ATP Finals after two titles (Stockholm, Rolex Paris Masters) and a final (Basel), an incredible result from his first two months working with Patrick Mouratoglou. 

In 2023, he won his fourth title (a second in Munich) and reached two more Masters 1000 finals (Monte Carlo and Rome). His best ranking came in August, when he was ranked fourth in the world.

ATP honours: 4 titles

Holger Rune has won four titles on the circuit: in Munich (clay) in 2022, taking advantage of Botic van de Zandschulp’s withdrawal in the final.

That same year, he took the trophy in Stockholm (indoor hard court), ousting Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. He went on to win the Rolex Paris Masters, crowning an excellent 2022 season.

In 2023, he resumed his quest for trophies by winning the Munich tournament for a second time, once again over Dutchman Van de Zandschulp.

In addition to his four titles, Rune has lost in five finals; Sofia and Basel in 2022, Monte Carlo and Rome in 2023 and Brisbane in 2024.

UTS honours: Youngest player in 2020, finalist in London in 2023

Rune ‘The Viking’ became the youngest player in UTS history in 2020. At the time, in Nice, he replaced Matteo Berrettini and, ranked around 800 in the world, lost to Corentin Moutet in a sudden death match.

The Dane then returned to the UTS circuit by reaching the final at the London Grand Final (beaten by Jack Draper) in 2023. In 2024, he played just two matches in Oslo (one win, one loss) before withdrawing from the tournament due to illness. 

Holger Rune is the son of Anders Nodskov and Aneke Rune, his mother and career manager. Rune took up tennis at the age of 6 because his sister, Alma, played. Her two idols are Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. His favourite stroke is the forehand, his favourite tournament is the French Open and his favourite city is Paris. 

His favourite footballer is Cristiano Ronaldo and his hero is James Bond. His favourite actor is Daniel Craig and his favourite TV series Prison Break. Rune loves spaghetti bolognese and ice cream. Juggling is his hidden talent. According to him, his best quality is his dedication and his worst quality is his laziness.