Casper Ruud, the Madrid Open's persevering tennis champion

Enric Gardiner Madrid Monday, 5 May 2025, 15:15 Compartir

Casper Ruud has finally earned the title he has been chasing for so long. The Norwegian, who before Sunday had lost all six major finals he had contested, uncorked the biggest trophy of his career by beating British tennis player Jack Draper 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 in the Madrid Masters 1000 final.

Ruud, one of the men known on the circuit for always falling just short of success, finally got the afternoon of glory he deserved. The Norwegian had lost all three Grand Slam finals he had entered, two at Roland Garros, to Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal, and one at the US Open, to Carlos Alcaraz, where he came within one set of becoming world number one. He also lost his two previous Masters 1000 finals, in Miami 2022 against Alcaraz and in Monte Carlo 2024 against Stefanos Tsitsipas, as well as the final of the Masters Tournament in 2023 against Djokovic.

With this background, it was logical that the betting was on Draper, one of the most exciting players of the season, winner of a Masters 1000 this season in Indian Wells and already ranked second best of the year behind Alcaraz. However, Ruud never stopped believing. He had everything against him in a first set in which the Briton, with a great serve and an outstanding forehand that has been working very well in Madrid, had 5-3 in favour to take advantage in the final. Ruud knew that in the game, he had little to do against Draper and focused on exploiting his strengths, namely resistance and passing more balls than anyone else, and little by little he was weakening Draper, who in the blink of an eye left the 5-3 behind to lose the set 5-7.

Dangerous on clay

It was a hard blow for the young Londoner, who had not lost a single set in these two weeks in Madrid and who now needed a comeback if he wanted to win a second Masters 1000 and confirm that he is also dangerous on clay. In the second set he proved that he was better in the important moments, forcing a third set to be held in the Manolo Santana stadium. The tournament would end in the best possible way.

And Ruud was the one who had more energy left. Although the Briton resisted the first few rounds, saving three break points at 1-1, Ruud got the break at 2-2 and didn't let it go until the end. Any glimpse of nerves about being in front of the biggest reward of his life, when he was serving for the title at 5-4, Ruud scared him off with two brutal forehands. The first, to generate a match point, the second, to confirm it and look at his bench with a face that said: "I told you I would get it".

Dream fulfilled

"It's a dream I've had since I was a kid. I knew I was going to need my best tennis today and luckily I played a great match. Now all that's left is to keep going," said the Norwegian, who succeeds Andrey Rublev in the rankings and will appear in Monday's rankings as the new world number seven, up eight places from the start of the tournament. "We tried and failed a few times, but we stuck together and finally made it. Thanks to everyone for trusting me," added the Rafael Nadal Academy alumnus.

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