“I’m excited for it” – Ruud primed for ‘Battle of the North’ against Rune at UTS Oslo

The pair will face off for the seventh time in their careers at UTS Oslo, but it will be just their second meeting on Scandinavian soil

Casper Ruud UTS Grand Finals – Tennis Majors / UTS

Jamie Malachy

February 7, 2024

It will be a special first when Casper Ruud takes on Holger Rune in their group-stage encounter at UTS Oslo this weekend.

The Scandinavian pair have met six times on the regular tour, but it will be the first in front of one of their home crowds as they lock horns in the Norwegian capital for the opening leg of this year’s UTS tour.

Ruud can expect the lion’s share of the support, and he will go into the match with a healthy 5-1 lead in their head-to-head.

However, the Dane is the favourite on paper with a ranking five places higher than that of Ruud. The Norwegian has admitted that their early encounters came when Rune was still a young novice on tour. As such, he is expecting a tough battle.

“I played him many times when he was really young, like the first year he started getting some wild cards in the tour,” Ruud told Tennis Majors ahead of the event.

“So, coincidentally, we played each other many times that year, and I was winning those matches. Last year, we played each other twice. He won one, and I won one.

“So, you know, we had some really tough battles last year and it was 1-1.

“This year we’re playing again at here at home in Oslo, so it’s going to be really fun – the Battle of the North. I’m excited for it.

“I’m going to try to do my best, and hopefully come out on top and win against him”.

Ruud is hoping to garner extra motivation from the support of his home crowd, and is hoping a nation perhaps not typically regarded as boisterous might surprise some of those in the stadium.

“Norwegian people, I mean… I never felt them as loud as maybe the French, because the French, they have really good passion,” Ruud explained.

“But hopefully, this weekend, they can surprise everyone and bring good energy here in the arena.”

UTS Olso takes place between February 9 – 11 and will feature eight of the world’s leading players as they battle to take victory in the first leg of 2024’s UTS tour.