By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday January 19, 2023
Requested what he stated to Jenson Brooksby after dropping to the American in 4 units on Day 4 on the Australian Open, Casper Ruud didn’t pull any punches:
“I stated, Nicely performed, and that he was annoyingly good in the present day,” the Norwegian informed experiences, with a smile.
Ruud spent the afternoon beneath the American’s spell, betwixt and between, getting jerked and jabbed in rallies as he noticed his short-lived run as highest-ranked participant within the males’s singles draw go up in flames in Melbourne.
Credit score to Ruud for saving three match factors to pressure a fourth set, however the Norwegian by no means actually solved the Brooksby riddle as he was neatly bundled up and packaged out in set 4.
Chalk it up as a studying expertise? Appears like Ruud remains to be attempting to make sense of it.
“Like I stated earlier, there have been many form of attention-grabbing rallies the place we have been rallying backwards and forwards, enjoying a bit of–not cat and mouse, however he had assault, possibly I got here again and was controlling the purpose, after which by some means he guessed proper or got here again within the rally once more.”
Ruud stated it was irritating to really feel he had the higher hand in rallies after which to out of the blue have the rug pulled out from beneath him.
“It is irritating once you really feel like you have got the momentum in a rally, after which a participant pulls out a shot like he did within the final recreation, for instance, the place he does that slice down the road, on the road, which is the one shot he can play and he is capable of do it,” he stated. “It is irritating and annoying on the similar time, however on the similar time I give him credit score, as a result of he stayed in there and fought effectively. Bodily it was a tricky match. It was near 4 hours and 4 units. He fought by effectively and did not appear to be affected by the length of the match.”
There was one thing else Ruud informed Brooksby on the internet, earlier than he headed to his chair, picked up his gear and walked off the courtroom for the final time at this yr’s Australian Open:
“I simply stated, Good luck for the remainder of the match, as effectively.”
