Casper Ruud books spot in Hamburg Open quarter-finals

• Casper Ruud is through to Hamburg European Open quarter-finals after coming from a set down to beat Cristian Garin 1-6 6-2 6-2
• The Hamburg European Open is the fifth consecutive clay-court event where Casper Ruud has reached the last eight in 2023

Casper Ruud is through to Hamburg European Open quarter-finals after coming from a set down to beat Cristian Garin 1-6 6-2 6-2.

Garin broke Ruud three times to claim the first set. However, the world No. 4 saved all five break points he faced in the second and deciding sets of the match to win it. The encounter between Ruud and Garin took 1 hour and 41 minutes. Ruud scored 71 points vs. Garin’s 65.

Casper Ruud is through to Hamburg Open quarter-finals after beating Chilean Cristian Garin. Photo/ Eurosport.

Speaking after the match, Casper Ruud said it is always tough to play against Christian.

“Cristian played much better than me at the beginning. He broke me right away and was returning from all corners. I had no answers, but just tried to stay in there in the second set and told myself to keep going, maybe I will get a chance. At 2-2 I was able to break him on on my first break point and things started to change. A couple of points can decide a point. Even though the result in the end seemed clear, it is always tough against Cristian.” Eurosport quotes Casper Ruud.

The Hamburg European Open is the fifth consecutive clay-court event where Casper Ruud has reached the last eight in 2023. Ruud had his best result in the Hamburg European Open back in 2020 when he reached the semifinal.

How Ruud Beat Christian Garin 

Casper Ruud went into the match knowing he needed to win so as to advance to the next round. The Norwegian didn’t give any chance to Garin, breaking him in the first game (1-0). However, the Chilean turned things around and managed to boost his lead after breaking Ruud in the fifth game. He also broke him in the seventh game and then comfortably claimed the set.

However, Garin didn’t serve out the set when leading 6-1 to be broken at 0. But he did outplay Ruud in the last five games of the set.

Ruud looked determined to win the second set after losing the first. At this stage, he needed to force a decider by claiming the set. As a result, he played with precision and earned two breaks in the fifth and seven games. The Norwegian, who boasts a career-high ranking of world No. 2 in singles, won the second set 6-2. He totally outplayed his opponent in the last six games of the set to move the score from 1-2 to 6-2.

Casper Ruud beat Cristian Garin 1-6 6-2 6-2. Photo/ ATP Tour.

The deciding set was a matter of life and death for the two players on court. Ruud broke twice in the first and third games of the set to take a 3-0 lead. At this point, pressure was on Garin and his opponent claimed the set. Ruud ended up winning nine consecutive games from 1-2 down in the second set.