Holger Rune defeats Alex de Minaur to advance in Paris | ATP Tour

Match Report

Former champ Rune downs De Minaur to continue Paris run

Dane faces Zverev in last four

November 01, 2024

Former Rolex Paris Masters champion Holger Rune kept alive his slim hopes of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals on Friday when he overcame Alex de Minaur in a dramatic quarter-final in the French capital.

In a baseline battle in Paris, Rune outlasted De Minaur down the home stretch to earn a dramatic 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 victory. The Dane locked in during the extended exchanges and recovered from squandering a break advantage in the third set to reach his fifth ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.

The 21-year-old beat Novak Djokovic to win his maiden Masters 1000 crown in Paris in 2022 and is 12-1 at the indoor hard event. Rune is 13th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin on 3,025 points and can still qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. Eighth-placed De Minaur (3,745 points) currently occupies the final Nitto ATP Finals qualification spot and is aiming to make his debut in Turin. The Australian will next play the ATP 250 event in Belgrade to chase further points.

Following his two-hour, 28-minute win, Rune improved to 3-2 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with De Minaur. The 13th seed will face Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals in Paris on Saturday.

De Minaur struggled on serve during the clash, making just 47 per cent of his first serves according to Infosys ATP Stats. Rune attacked at every opportunity and fired 24 winners en route to his second Top 10 win of the season (Grigor Dimitrov, Monte-Carlo).

More to follow…