Denmark’s tennis star Holger Rune has admitted that he was not up to the mark as he suffered an opening round defeat in the US Open 2024. The fourth and final Grand Slam of the year began on Monday where players from all over the world are participating to showcase their talent and secure the ultimate prize.
Rune became one of the most high-profile players to exit from the mega-event as he suffered a defeat in the first round to America’s Brandon Nakashima in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 6-1, 6-4. It was the first time this season that the 21-year-old suffered a defeat in the first round of a Grand Slam.
Rune, who has been regarded as one of the most talented players currently playing in men’s tennis, in a post on the social media platform X -- previously known as Twitter-- after the match, admitted that he was no way near good enough in the contest. The Gentofte-born star also admitted that now is the time to look at ‘everything’ now and expressed optimism to not ‘let’ down his fans anymore.
"The best support, lots of happy tennis kids, perfect weather, perfect court and tournament and I played extremely bad tennis,” he said. "No offence to my opponent, but I managed only 39% !!first serves , tons of unforced errors, this is not what I or anyone should expect. I need to look into everything now. This is not satisfying for me or my fans. I will not let you down anymore.”
The defeat would have hurt Rune much more than any other poor result this season, as he was coming into the contest on the back of an impressive outing in the recently concluded Cincinnati Open. In that competition, the journey for the current world number 15 came to an end as he lost in the semifinal to America’s Frances Tiafoe with a score of 4-6, 6-1, 7-6.
Big bummer yesterday 💔 The best support, lots of happy tennis kids, perfect weather, perfect court and tournament and I played extremely bad tennis. No offence to my opponent, but I managed only 39% !!first serves , tons of unforced errors, this is not what I or anyone should…
