– Absolutely huge that he manages to get to the final here this year. Not many people would have believed that earlier in the season, says Eurosport expert Christer Francke after the match. Development officer in the Norwegian Tennis Association, Ruud’s technique coach and expert on Eurosport, Øyvind Sørvald, struggled to find the words to describe the performance. IMPRESSED: The Eurosport experts struggled to find words about Ruud’s performance. Photo: LISI NIESNER / Reuters – I have never seen him better. He is extremely calm, and he moves very well. He has had a tremendous rise with every game. This was enormously good, says Øivind Sørvald In the stands sat a clearly moved Ruud family with a moved father and coach Christian Ruud in the focus of the cameras. – I think he should have almost all the credit for my success. He was very strict with me, we had a good plan since I was so tall and said I wanted to become a pro, says Ruud and added: – He took those words very seriously and pushed me almost every day since I was 12 years old. Without mum and dad and their support I wouldn’t be here today, says Ruud on the inner court Ruud eventually won 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 and in Sunday’s final Novak Djokovic awaits on the other side of the net in a dream final . TEAM RUUD: The family and support staff eagerly followed the semi-final against Zverev. Photo: Beate Oma Dahle / NTB – It will be tough – I went out there without playing with too much emotion and pressure. Today I played very well. From start to finish it went my way. I am very happy to win this match, says Ruud. Last year, Ruud was in his first Grand Slam final in the same tournament. Then he clearly lost to the clay king Rafael Nadal, who is now out with an injury. Last year he also reached the final of the US Open, but lost to Carlos Alcaraz. Now he gets a third opportunity to win his first Grand Slam. – I didn’t think I was the favorite to go to the final before the tournament. But here we are two weeks later – hopefully “third time can be the charm for me”, says Ruud on the field. – Last time I played against Nadal, now against Djokovic… They are two of the best players of all time. It will be tough, but I will smile a lot and enjoy it, concludes Ruud. Zverev gave Ruud a fight for the points in the first two sets, but in the last set the German seemed at a loss and was unable to catch up with his superior from Snarøya. After the match, the German reveals that he had problems with his physique. – Were you 100 percent healthy out there? – I don’t want to take credit from him, but to be honest: Yes, I had my problems, says the German and continues: – I think he played extremely well. I had a physical problem. Against players like him you have to run a lot, you have to fight. As in the previous match, actually. Very, very similar. I wasn’t able to do that and couldn’t put as much power into my serve. FINAL READY: Only Novak Djokovic stands between Casper Ruud and his first Grand Slam trophy. Photo: JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP Excellent start In the semi-finals, Ruud got off to a brilliant start and broke Zverev early and led 2-0 in the first set after just six minutes. Zverev got up and broke back directly in a game that alone lasted over ten minutes, but from there on it was mostly about Ruud in the first set. With the help of two aces, he went up 4–1 and served home the set after first fending off a break point. The first set lasted just 47 minutes. The German started the second set best and held serve the first few times, while Ruud had to fend off three break points before winning five points in a row and leveling at 2–2. At 3–3, Ruud made the move by breaking his opponent’s serve point blank. He then held serve twice and could celebrate another set win after an hour and 37 minutes of play. Clueless German DISAPPOINTED: Alexander Zverev couldn’t catch up with Ruud on Friday night. Photo: EMMANUEL DUNAND / AFP In the third set, Ruud held out with tennis of the highest class. Takes three straight games and got everything in his own hands early in what became the last set. Ruud’s lead-heavy forehand becomes decisive when Ruud increases the lead to 4–0 in the third set. Zverev seemed at a loss and despaired of meeting his superior in the Snarøya boy. In the last game, it seemed that the German had given up and Ruud served for 6–0 in the third set and final place in Roland Garros for the second year in a row. – In the third set, I manage to step up and let myself loose a little more. I manage to beat several good winners and he collapses a bit, so I get what I want, says Ruud to Eurosport. Earlier on Friday night, Novak Djokovic secured the opportunity to play for his 23rd Grand Slam title after knocking out world number one Carlos Alcaraz 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1. The Spaniard had his chances ruined by cramp and Djokovic finally got it easy in the last two sets. The final is broadcast on TVNorge and Dicovery+ on Sunday from 2.30pm.
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Ruud ready for the final in Roland Garros – ravaged by a bewildered Zverev – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
