Tennis Prose




Jun/20

29

Biofile Casper Ruud Interview

By Scoop Malinowski

Status: ATP no. 5. Career best ranking was no. 2 in 2022. Winner of twelve ATP singles titles.

DOB: December 22, 1998 In: Oslo, Norway

Ht: 6-0 Wt: 160

First Tennis Memory: Probably just being at my home club with my dad (Christian) when I was little and playing with him. He was a young guy who liked to do a lot of stuff with me, a lot of different sports. That’s my first memory.

Tennis Inspirations: My dad has always helped me and is part of my inspiration part. But I also always looked up to Rafa Nadal and Roger. Saw them since I was a little kid on TV. I actually got a picture and autograph from Rafa when I was like seven or eight. He’s been a big idol for me. At French Open. My dad took it when I was little. He has these passes to get into the restaurant so I met him there and I got a picture and it was a lot of fun.

Last Book Read: A mental book actually, from a Norwegian writer. I don’t think you know him.

Current Car: I drive a Porsche (black).

First Famous Player You Met Or Encountered: My dad maybe [laughs].

Greatest Career Moments: Winning Barcelona. I’m super happy to do it here in Barcelona in front of a packed stadium and on Rafa Nadal Court. It’s special to me because I looked up to him all my childhood, came here myself as a 13-year-old boy to watch him and the others play here. It’s a great feeling.

And probably my first ATP title in Argentina (def. Pedro Sousa in final. Also, the title win was the first from a player from Norway. Ruud also passed his father’s career best ranking of 39 with the win, with a ranking of 34 the following week.)

Most Painful Moment: Probably the semifinal loss in Rio with match point (vs Pablo Carreno Busta in 2017). Being so close was very tough some days after. But it was still a great week for me and more than I expected from that week.

Favorite Tournaments: All the Grand Slams are unreal. But I haven’t seen all the tournaments yet so I really wouldn’t know. But I heard Indian Wells is a joke. I went to Monte Carlo Masters which was a lot of fun.

Favorite Sports Outside Tennis: Hockey and golf and basketball.

Three Athletes You Like To Watch & Follow: Kevin Durant. Ricky Fowler. And Marty St. Louis.

Strangest Match: I had a match which took like eight hours because of a rain delay once in a junior event. In Holland. But nothing strange happened.

Funniest Players Encountered: Me and my good buddy Mikael Ymer, is a young fellow from Sweden. We had a lot of fun together and he’s like kind of a tricky player to play. So we had some good fights and some good rallies.

Funny Tennis Memory: I usually watch a lot of tennis so I’ve been watching Monfils play. So there’s always something funny going on with him. Sometimes Kyrgios produces some magic, something you can laugh about.

Why Do You Love Tennis: It’s just so many things about the game that I love. It’s just being able to be out there by yourself. Playing, competing at the highest level in the world is all I ever dreamed of. So I’m trying to get there. I’ve come pretty far already but I’m still trying to go for a lot more and achieve more in my career. I’m getting a little taste of it already so it’s a lot of fun.

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Cookie dough [smiles].

People Qualities Most Admired: Just being kind and humble. Nice to everyone. Doesn’t matter who you are, just being nice.

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