The addition of
Boris Becker to
Holger Rune's coaching team already appears to be somewhat paying off after the World No. 6 recorded his second match win since Wimbledon at the
Swiss Indoors Basel.
The 20-year-old burst onto the scene last year and achieved impressive heights, most notably defeating Novak Djokovic to win the Paris Masters title. However, the last few months have been difficult for the young player as he dealt with coaching changes and a back injury.
After reaching the quarter-finals of Wimbledon, Rune appeared to experience a significant drop in form, losing in the first round of every tournament he played on the North American swing, including the US Open. He managed to pull off one win at the China Open earlier this month but proceeded to crash out of the Shanghai Masters and the Stockholm Open in his opening matches.
Rune hoping for a deep run in Switzerland
Nevertheless, the Dane was able to make a strong start at the ATP 500 tournament in Basel, Switzerland, fighting back from a set down to defeat
Miomir Kecmanovic 1-6, 7-5, 6-3. This comes just a week after their clash in Stockholm, where defending champion Rune lost to the Serbian player in straight sets.
Moreover, this is Rune's first tournament where he is accompanied by his new coach Becker, who recently revealed that he will be working with the player for the remainder of 2023. The six-time Grand Slam champion previously coached current World No. 1 Djokovic from 2014 to 2016, helping him to win six of his 24 major titles.
After the match, Rune spoke of his happiness at getting through the first round.
"I am happy I kept fighting and turned the match around. I tried to raise my level. I always enjoy playing here," he said.
The Dane is likely to also be thinking of the upcoming Nitto
ATP Finals in Turin. At the moment, Rune is clinging onto a qualifying spot, sitting in eighth place in the live race with 3145 points.
However, Taylor Fritz is under 100 points behind him, meaning that if Rune doesn't build up some back to back wins, he will be likely to miss out on the prestigious season-ending championship.