UTS Oslo: Ruud finishes group stage unbeaten despite valiant Kjaer

Casper Ruud has delighted the Oslo crowd – but so did The Junior

Casper Ruud (UTS)

February 10, 2024

The Telenor Arena was rocking as they got a surprise – a match between two Norwegians at UTS Oslo.

Norway’s top junior Nicolai Budkov Kjaer stepped in to replace Dominic Thiem as the round-robin stage drew to a close – and he faced Norway’s top player, Casper “The Ice Man” Ruud.

And the match was much closer than the scoreline suggested – 16-9, 14-13, 14-13, meaning Ruud finishes the group stage with three wins.

There was a delightful end to the encounter, though, with Kjaer lobbing Ruud with a beautiful backhand at the net, Ruud returning it with a tweener, and The Junior simply tapping it down to force a deciding point.

The Ice Man’s serve – which he struggled with at times on Friday – saw him out, with Kjaer unable to return.

Ruud had lots of nice things to say about his young opponent afterwards.

“He’s already a great player. He pushed me, I pushed him…two quarters went in my favour but could have gone both ways.”