Holger Rune lost in three sets in the First Round of the U.S. Open on Monday. The No. 15-ranked tennis player in the world was completely out-matched in a disappointing, ugly and very unexpected result.
He proceeded to completely belittle his opponent with perhaps the most disrespectful thing he could say!
Rune advanced to at least the Round of 16 in each of his last four tournaments. His 2024 season has not been quite as good as 2023, when he at one point moved up to a career-high ranking of No. 4, but it has been a good year. A top-20 ranking in the world is nothing at which to scoff.
However, his first match in Flushing was ugly. Unranked American Brandon Nakashima wiped the court with Rune. The former won 96 points, including 40 receiving points, and 18 games with 11 aces to beat the latter 6-2, 6-1, 6-4.
As good as Nakashima played — credit where credit is due — a lot of Rune’s loss was self-inflicted. He should not commit five double faults, he should not lose six of six break points, and he should not lose in the first round of a major. It was a really poor result.
Rune got out-played by Nakashima, yes, but he largely out-played himself.
The Danish tennis star is aware of his shortcomings. However, in expressing his disappointment, he took a vicious shot at Nakashima while actively trying not to disrespect Nakashima.
To say “no offence to my opponent” before completely discrediting his win is vicious. Perhaps the slight language barrier played a role in this unintentional savagery, but woof. That’s brutal.
Holger Rune is essentially saying that Brandon Nakashima wasn’t good enough to beat him without a completely and total collapse. To be fair, he isn’t saying anything that isn’t untrue. He should not lose to an unranked opponent in the first round. But he did! Give the American his well-earned flowers.