After being away from tennis for 335 days due to an Achilles tendon injury, Holger Rune finally rediscovered the taste of victory at the Davis Cup. He took on Iliyan Radulov in Denmark’s clash against Bulgaria and won 6-3, 6-3. This victory was crucial for the Danish team as it levelled the score at 1-1. After the match, Rune admitted that winning on his return made him feel a sense of pride.

“It was a good game in a crazy atmosphere with a great team behind me,” he said after the match. “It was fantastic to stand there again, a completely unique feeling. I’ve fought so hard for so long, so it was a mixture of pride and relief that now the first game was over well. The body feels good, and the game worked.”

The Dane also played down concerns regarding his fitness and stated that his body feels much better than before. Being one of Denmark’s most important players, the team will be hoping that he remains fit for the remainder of the Davis Cup.

“The plan is to play tomorrow. I’ve had good treatment, that’s why I’m only coming now (for a press conference), and everything feels good, including the Achilles tendon. Hopefully I will also feel good when I wake up tomorrow and am ready for another good performance,” he added.

Bulgaria had taken the lead in the match through Grigor Dimitrov, who defeated Elmer Moeller 6-7, 6-3, 6-4. With the score now tied after Rune’s win, the third match is highly important for both teams. It will be a doubles encounter between the Danish pair of August Holmgren and Carl Emil Overbeck and Bulgaria’s Alexander Donski and Pyotr Nesterov.

Rune will then return to the court for the fourth round and will be up against Dimitrov. This match will definitely be the one to watch, as it may very well settle the tie. The two have faced each other on four occasions so far, and the H2H record is currently tied at 2-2. Rune came out on top in their previous meeting, which took place in 2024 at the Monte Carlo Masters.

The victory over Radulov must have been a major confidence booster for Rune, who had been out of action since the Stockholm Open last year. It was here that he suffered the Achilles tendon injury during his clash against Ugo Humbert. Staying on the sidelines for so long resulted in his ranking taking a massive hit.

For context, Rune was ranked No. 11 at the time he suffered the injury. Now he is down to No. 144 and will have to work his way up once again. But for now, he is focused on getting the Danish team past Bulgaria in the Davis Cup. The victory over Radulov also meant a lot to his mother, who was present in the stands.

Holger Rune’s mother was delighted with her son’s display in the Davis Cup

His mother, Aneke Rune, remarked that it was special for her to see Rune enjoying himself on the court once again.

“It was really beautiful to see,” she told Danish media outlet B.T. “It was so wonderful and liberating to see his joy. He is simply in his element on a tennis court—that much is obvious. Nothing seems forced or artificial when he is out there.”

What made the victory even more impressive is that Rune was under pressure before taking the court against Radulov. He knew that a defeat would be a huge blow to his team’s hopes of making it through to the next round. But he ended up delivering quite a strong performance.

Rune was solid on his serve throughout the match and suffered just one break. On the other hand, he broke Radulov’s serve on four occasions. The Dane wrapped up the victory in an hour and 27 minutes. It remains to be seen whether the Danish team will manage to take the lead in the matchup before he steps on the court again to face Dimitrov.