“He looked lost” — Nuno Borges shares turning point in surprising triumph over Casper Ruud at French Open

Portuguese tennis player Nuno Borges shared what he realised against Casper Ruud during their clash at the French Open. The 28-year-old secured his first win over a top-10 player during the third round of the ongoing Roland Garros.

The defeat was a significant one for Ruud, who came into the competition after playing twice in the final and once in the semifinal in the last three editions at the Roland Garros. Borges spoke to The Tennis Channel, where he explained that he noticed something different about Ruud during the contest.

The Maia-born, whose journey in the competition ended in the third round as he suffered a defeat to Australia’s Alexei Popyrin in straight sets, stated that he realised that the two-time French Open runner-up was ‘lost’. Borges stated that early in the third set, realised Ruud was not feeling 100 % early in the third set which gave him a sense of confidence.

“His intensity, the way he started, was really tough for me to counter,” he said. “I thought I played a couple of really good games, almost three. But then I felt the way he made me push for those two or three games, really took a toll and I couldn’t keep up. All of a sudden, I started getting few points. Few more mistakes. Couple of winners that I wasn’t really expecting and I look myself serving for the set. And all of a sudden I just thought he was kind a lost. Early in the third set, I realised he was not feeling at his best. I guess I grew with that. A little more confident. Started playing even better, knowing I had more freedom to play. I could have made some mistakes but even then it would have been difficult for him to beat me in the best of five. I guess that’s the magic of it.”