(VIDEO) Casper Ruud corrects journalist over Nadal-linked daughter name rumour: “That was fake news”

A post-match interview confusion unfolded during Casper Ruud’s media duties after journalist Brett Haber inadvertently repeated a piece of social media fake news regarding the name of Ruud’s newborn daughter. According to unverified online sources, the child had allegedly been named “Raffaella” in honour of Rafael Nadal, a claim that was ultimately and firmly dismissed by Ruud in a brief but striking exchange.

The 27-year-old is competing at the Rome Open – where he achieved a notable victory over Jiri Lehecka to reach the fourth round. However, this time, the particular question he received on the Tennis Channel desk was what stole the attention, following the journalist’s confusion due to fake news circulating on social media.

The episode came three months after Ruud recently became a father for the first time with his wife, Maria Galligani, an announcement he made at the end of January. The timing coincided with the Australian Open, where the three-time Grand Slam finalist was still competing while preparing for the possibility of a sudden return to Copenhagen if the birth had occurred during the tournament.

However, the birth ultimately did not take place during his participation at the Australian Open and occurred only after his elimination in Melbourne, allowing him to return home without interrupting match play.

The former world No. 2 secured this Sunday his passage to the Round of 16 in Rome, with another straight-sets victory. The 23rd seed defeated Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-4 and guaranteed a clash against local player Lorenzo Musetti in the next round, scheduled for Tuesday.

While answering questions from Tennis Channel post-match, in an interview with Brett Haber, the particular moment occurred when the journalist asked him about his off-court life and specifically the recent birth of his daughter.

“Let’s talk about important things. It has now been a little more than two months since your daughter was born. Is it Raffaella?” Haber asked Ruud – a reference to the alleged name circulating online and loosely connected to an imagined tribute to Nadal.

“It’s not Raffaella,” Ruud responded with a smile, taking the unusual question in good humour. “Someone wrote that. That was probably fake news.”

“The right name is Camilla,” added the three-time Grand Slam finalist. “I saw that too. Someone on Facebook, I think.”

Meanwhile on court, Ruud continues his campaign in Rome – following a significant drop in the rankings. The Norwegian recently fell outside the top 20 for the first time in five years. A few weeks ago, he failed to defend his Madrid Open 2025 title, being eliminated in the quarter-finals by Alexander Blockx, which leaves Ruud currently ranked world No. 25.

The mission in Rome is clearly to rebuild his ranking through wins, in a tournament that has historically been beneficial for him. In Rome, he has reached the semi-finals three times (2020, 2022, 2023), while this time he must defend the points from his 2025 quarter-final run. An exit before the last eight would inevitably lead to further ranking losses.

His next challenge will be against local world No. 10 Lorenzo Musetti – a 2025 semi-finalist who is also in need of ranking points, in his case to maintain a top-10 position. It will be a clash between two players who feel particularly comfortable in Roman conditions and their first meeting in three years.

With two previous encounters, the head-to-head stands at 1-1, although Ruud claimed victory in their only clay-court meeting back in 2023 at the Bastad Open semi-finals.