A defeat is always a bitter pill to swallow. The 20-year-old Danish tennis player Holger Rune recently lost to the world number one, Novak Djokovic in QFs of Paris Masters. However, Rune believes the result could’ve been much worse if he had faced the Serbian a few weeks earlier. After gathering all the positives from that game, the number 10 now looks optimistic ahead of the season-ending championship.

Novak Djokovic made the defending champion of Paris Masters taste his own medicine by defeating him 7-5, 6-7(3),6-4 on Saturday. Djokovic has now already clinched his 7th title in Paris. Meanwhile, Rune looks to gear up for the Nitto ATP Finals. But it has been a rollercoaster ride for the Dane this year. Here’s his take on his journey to the road to Turin.

Rune reveals his takeaways from the match against Novak Djokovic

Holger Rune had struggled to win matches ever since making it to the QFs of Wimbledon earlier this year. His early exit from the US Open this year made him change the coaching team. He parted ways with the former coach of Serena Williams – Patrick Mouratoglou and brought in the former coach of Djokovic- Boris Becker. Rest is already reflecting in his recent surge in performances. He said that his performance against the world number one gave him enough confidence to bring back his A-game ahead of the Finals in Turin.

Here’s how he reflected on the sudden upliftment of his performance recently after the worries he had earlier. He said, “If I had played against him a few weeks ago, I would have lost in two sets.” He added, “And this is how I played a great game in which I showed that I am close to the maximum. That best shows how far I’ve come. I should have done some things differently, but I lacked courage in certain moments. The match was similar to last year [when Rune beat Djokovic in the Bercy final], although I think I was more passive in some periods. On the other hand, maybe he forced me to be more passive.”

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He was scheduled to play at the Moselle Open, but he pulled out to prepare for ATP Finals. Rune believes now he has to analyse his performance and come back stronger in Turin. Can he finish the season on a higher note?

The former coach of Djokovic might have the answers for Rune’s worries in Turin

The addition of 55-year-old German former number 1 in tennis, Boris Becker to Rune’s squad has proved to be fruitful so far. Rune has reached the semis of the Swiss Indoors and the Quarter-Finals of the Paris Open recently, just two weeks after his inclusion to the team. Becker has managed to help him achieve his goal of reaching the ATP Finals for the first time in his career.

The highest-ranked male Danish player has already thanked Becker for his instant impact on his game. He said the German had helped him to break out from a ‘negative spiral‘. The spiral which took him down to lose matches in a row this season.

Can Boris Becker be the ‘Sherpa‘ to Rune’s climb to the summit at the season-ending championship, or will the Serbinator have the last laugh?

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