Top favorite Rune before Basel: ‘Boris understands me as a player and person’

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It is currently the big topic on the tennis tour: the sensational comeback of Boris Becker (55) as a coach. The German, who once celebrated six Grand Slam victories as a professional and later coached Novak Djokovic to as many major triumphs, is back in the circus.

This year, after his prison sentence for postponement of bankruptcy, he had initially resumed his work as a TV pundit, but now he was interested in another, very special task: Becker takes on Holger Rune, the 20-year-old Dane, who As a result of which it rose to the highest level very quickly, it managed to build a dubious reputation over time.

On the one hand, there were Rune’s great sporting achievements, such as last year’s Masters victory in Paris-Bercy, the title in Munich in the spring and the two finals in Monte Carlo and Rome.

But there were also inglorious performances – for example when he irritatedly threw his mother Aneke out of the stadium, got into an argument with Casper Ruud (24) or provoked Stan Wawrinka (38) at the net. This year, the “Gazzetta dello Sport” ranked the impulsive right-hander number one in its list of the biggest tennis bullies.

“We have a good connection”

Rune had a furious start in 2023, but fell sharply again after Wimbledon. He has won just one match since July. It is this bear market that recently made the youngster look for new input – and found the old contact Becker on his mobile phone. The two are said to have exchanged ideas for the first time in 2021. Now, two years and a first week of training and later getting to know each other in Monte Carlo, everything is in place.

Becker is at Rune’s side for the first time in Basel. This is where the sporting turnaround should begin. From now on, the joint focus is on the tournaments in the St. Jakobshalle, in Paris-Bercy – and ideally on the ATP finals in Turin. Rune says he wants to go one step further in Basel. After reaching the final last year, this means: only the title is good enough.

Rune expects a lot from the collaboration: “I had a few good lunches with him,” he says with a smile: “We have a good connection. He understands me as a player and as a person.” Rune seems to trust Becker not only to help him progress in terms of play, but also to help him channel his temperament: “He is here to make me better .I learned a lot during the week in Monte Carlo – then you will see!”

He doesn’t want to reveal too much, Rune says, laughing. Exactly this: he is willing to talk to Becker about ‘the basics’ in the life of a tennis professional. This not only means that he looks carefully at service and returns, but also, for example, at sensible tournament planning over a year: “It’s about finding a good mix of matches and regeneration. Boris can help me with his experience.”

Becker: “I love his outbursts”

Becker, who does not want to attend media engagements in Basel, also told Eurosport during the week that he would think fewer and better-timed missions during the calendar year would be wiser. And it is also clear: Becker, once not a smooth professional himself, likes Rune’s impulsiveness: “Holger is a rough diamond that needs to be polished. I love his emotional outbursts.”

Will there be a few more in Basel, where he is the top seed in the absence of Carlos Alcaraz? Anyway, Rune seems to have closed one of its old, unpleasant chapters. The one with Wawrinka. De Romand had advised the young star last year in Paris-Bercy that he should ‘stop behaving like a baby’. Rune then teased in Indian Wells in the spring, “You have nothing to say to me this time?”

But the matter has now been resolved, Rune emphasizes in Basel: “We are joking about it now. I would say that our relationship is quite good.” So good that they even trained together at the Swiss Indoors on Saturday. Under the eyes of comeback coach Becker.

Source : Blick