Former world number one Boris Becker has agreed with the criticism of America’s Jim Courier on Denmark’s Holger Rune. The 21-year-old is still regarded as one of the most talented players currently playing in men’s tennis in the singles category.
However, his court performances have been far from consistent. Because of this, he has now narrowly missed out on a spot in the upcoming ATP Finals. The mega-event, which is the last in the men’s tennis calendar, features the top eight players and will be played in Turin this year. Rune’s most recent outing was in the Paris Masters, where he lost in the semifinal to Alexander Zverev in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 7-6.
Former world number one Courier recently spoke to the Tennis Channel, as quoted by Tennis 365, where he criticised Rune. The 54-year-old said that despite his talent, the Gentofte-born player lacks maturity in his gameplay, which is stopping him from winning important matches.
"I, for one, have no idea what he's trying to do out here,” he said. “It's just all happening instinctively - it's like a full-blown jazz exploration out here. No rhyme, no rhythm. There's a lot of great things happening, it's just all scattershot and that is not a recipe for long-term success. It's still a very immature game. If he wants to be with the big boys consistently, he's gonna have to find something he can rely on rather than throwing paint against the wall and seeing what it looks like when it's all said and done. He just needs a sense of order - doesn't have it.”
Former world number one Becker, who has also coached Rune in the recent past, in a post on his official account on the social media platform X — previously known as Twitter — has back Courier’s claims. “Jim knows what he’s talking about,” he wrote.
Jim knows what he’s talking about!
"It's still a very immature game...he just needs a sense of order" Jim Courier had some interesting words about Holger Rune's tennis while calling his Paris semifinal vs Alexander Zverev for @TennisChannel Do you agree? 🤔
