Holger Rune is preparing to make his Laver Cup debut this coming weekend in San Francisco. The world No. 11 will represent Team Europe for the first time in his career alongside the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Casper Ruud.
He’s been doing his research, speaking to other players who have competed in the Laver Cup. And Rune made a bold claim ahead of his debut, suggesting tennis stars preferred the team event to Grand Slam tournaments, which are seen as the pinnacle of the sport.
A Ryder Cup-style event co-created by Roger Federer to honour Rod Laver, the Laver Cup was launched in 2017, and the eighth edition will take place from Friday to Sunday this week.
The tournament has offered tennis players the opportunity to team up with one another to represent Europe or the rest of the world. In the past, Federer has played the event and joined forces with his rivals, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
Now, Rune will have the opportunity to compete in the three-day competition, and he has big expectations after speaking to past Team Europe members, including Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
“[I’ve] talked to many of the players and they say it’s one of the most fun events to play in, a great event,” he told the Laver Cup.
“[For] many of them, it’s their favourite event – even more than the Grand Slams. I have high expectations, but most of all I’m just going to really enjoy it.”
One unique element of the Laver Cup is that players on the same team are allowed to coach one another during matches, along with their coaches.
There have been iconic scenes in the past of Federer giving guidance to Djokovic, or Nadal teaching Tsitsipas how to use hand signals in doubles.
And Rune is looking forward to giving and receiving feedback from his competitors. He added: “I think all players have their unique way of seeing the matches and the technical side of the game … all of the players might have very good tips.”
With singles and doubles matches played across the long weekend, Rune is already eyeing a potential partner – one he has history with.
The Dane teamed up with Alcaraz at the junior Les Petits As tournament back in 2017, when they were just 13 years old, and they reached the semi-finals.
“Has to be Carlos. That could be pretty iconic to relive that moment again,” he said of a potential doubles teammate for this weekend.
“Those [were] good memories and obviously we played each other many times, where we’re on the opposite side of the net, so now we can finally try to be on the same side, which is going to be pretty cool.”
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