“I Can Beat His Record” – Junior French Open Champion on Surpassing Rafael Nadal

Published 10/14/2020, 6:55 AM EDT

Each year Rafael Nadal keeps raising the bar, especially at his beloved French Open, where he won a record-extending 13th title. Rafa beat arch-rival Novak Djokovic in straight sets to win another title in Paris. Breaking his dominance and record at the French Open is an uphill task, and many believe it will remain intact for generations to come. But a young junior champion is striving to break Rafa’s record at the French Open.

Holger Rune’s ambitious plan to surpass Rafael Nadal at the French Open

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2019 French Open junior champion Holger Rune has targeted Rafa’s records at Roland Garros and is confident that he can get closer or even break them. “I’m not at his level yet. There’s still some way to go, but I believe I can beat his record.”

(Quotes have been translated from Danish)

Rune is yet to make his senior Grand Slam debut. But the 17-year-old has a plan in his mind. By next year he expects himself to get into the top 100, and when he turns 19 in two years, he believes he will be challenging for the title. He said, “I just talked about goals with my coach. In a year I will be in the top 100. In two years, I will be at the very top. “

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The Danish player called Nadal inspiring and bold. And right now he is confident of reaching Rafa’s level in a few years. “Nadal is really inspiring and so bold a character. I work every day to be able to be as good as him… I believe in it. I know what it takes. It’s not going to be easy and it’s a lot of hard work,” Holger Rune said to TV 2 Sport.

Looking at Nadal’s French Open journey, he made his main-draw debut in 2005, aged 19, and went on to win the title. Since then he has racked up 100 wins in 15 years and just faced two losses. Similarly, Rune is also looking to follow the same path and win the French Open aged 19.

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Rune is ranked 2nd in the junior rankings. He did achieve the number one ranking last year following his Junior French Open triumph. He has time on his side to fulfill the very ambitious task of surpassing Nadal on clay.

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Bhavishya Mittal is a tennis author for EssentiallySports, who is currently pursuing his Bachelor's degree in Journalism from Manipal University. A former sports editor for The Manipal Journal, Bhavishya has also worked for The New Indian Express. He has a keen eye for many sports but he is a particularly ardent follower of tennis, with a zest to create riveting articles on the ever-evolving sport.

“I Can Beat His Record” – Junior French Open Champion on Surpassing Rafael Nadal

Holger Rune’s ambitious plan to surpass Rafael Nadal at the French Open

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