De Minaur won the match comfortably against Felix Auger-Aliassime at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam, and Bolavip had the chance to ask both finalists a couple of questions after the game.

The Australian was a happy man after winning his first indoor title, and claiming the trophy in Rotterdam after losing two consecutive finals in that tournament meant a lot to him.

“I am super happy I finally got the title here in Rotterdam. I mean, I have lost two finals in a row, but they were against (Jannik) Sinner and Carlos (Alcaraz), and they are not the worst to lose against. I was trying to tell myself that as well when I lost last year,” de Minaur said.

“I have not been playing my best tennis this week, but I played extremely well today. I stepped up to the occasion, so I am super proud of myself. I am really happy to get my first indoor title.”

Auger-Aliassime credits de Minaur after Rotterdam Open final

Auger-Aliassime acknowledged that his opponent on the other side of the net was simply too good on the day, which the scoreline also showed, as he suffered a straight-sets defeat of 6-3, 6-2.

“Big credit to Alex, he is a very tough competitor,” the Canadian said. “With my level today, it was simply not enough to beat him. I was aware of the challenge, but he was just too good today. There is a reason why he was the No. 1 seed. He is super consistent and you have to play at your best to beat him.”

During the second set, Auger-Aliassime received an off-court medical timeout, but he assured his fans that they do not have to worry: “No, no, there is no reason to be worried, it is not an injury. I was just feeling some tightness in my left leg, but I am definitely not worried about it. I have just played a lot of matches in a row now, but it is nothing to be worried about.”

De Minaur sets big Grand Slam goal

Neither de Minaur nor Auger-Aliassime have ever won a Masters 1000 or a Grand Slam title, despite consistently being among the best players on the ATP Tour. But they are hoping for that to change in the near future as they both chase glory at the Majors.

“My whole life and my whole career, I haven’t been one to speak with words out loud. I let my actions do the talking, but of course I am dreaming about winning Grand Slams. One hundred percent. That is the ultimate goal for me and every tennis player, and I will do everything in my power to win a Grand Slam,” said de Minaur, who elaborated that he is aiming to win one already this year.

“I suffered a very tough defeat at the Australian Open, but I got back up and the year is long. There are still three more Grand Slams and countless Masters, so I am hoping to step up and win some of those big titles.”

De Minaur names the key for him to succeed

The Australian revealed that his self-belief has increased significantly as he has learned more about his game over the past year, and he specifically pointed to his serve as being key when facing top players, as what used to be his weak spot has improved a lot, according to him. Curiously, his mobility also drew praise from Francisco Cerundolo when building the ideal ATP player.

“I think I have improved so much, so I believe I can compete for these titles. My serve has improved, which is super important for me. Everyone knows what I can do from the baseline, and if my serve can help me get more free points, then it makes my life a lot easier, and it will definitely be easier to win the big titles,” added de Minaur, who improved his first-serve percentage a lot this season, getting more first serves in and also winning more points behind his first serve, something he is aiming to keep focusing on.

“The key for me is to make a lot of first serves. This week I haven’t been bombing serves, because I don’t always need to do that. I need to hit a high percentage, and I am finally finding the balance so I am not jeopardizing that first serve.

“But it is a tough balance between having a high enough percentage and still doing enough with my serve. In the past, my percentage has been too low, which has cost me crucial matches against the best players in the world, like Sinner and Alcaraz. I have made it difficult for myself in the past.”

Auger-Aliassime eyes Grand Slam glory as well

Despite losing the match, Auger-Aliassime shared some big dreams for the rest of the season, as he revealed that he is chasing a top-eight spot so that he can qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin, but more than that, he is going for the big titles, including a Grand Slam.

“First of all, my goal for this season is to be back in Turin. That would be great and that is my main goal for the season. If you qualify for Turin, that shows that you have been super consistent throughout the season,” Auger-Aliassime said.

“In terms of tournaments, I haven’t won a Masters 1000 or a Grand Slam yet, so I am really chasing these titles now. That is what I am trying to do, and I will do everything I can to achieve it soon. I have improved a lot in the last few years and I am serving much better now. I used to have a lot of ups and downs and be a bit more inconsistent.”

Auger-Aliassime believes Mboko can also chase Grand Slam success

Victoria Mboko reached the final in Doha and Denis Shapovalov reached the semifinal in Dallas, which made this week quite a good one for Canadian tennis players, despite not winning a single title, and that is something Auger-Aliassime is happy about:

“I am always happy when the other Canadian tennis players are doing well. Gabriel Diallo had a great year last year and he is a really good friend of mine. Shapovalov did well in Dallas, Mboko did amazing things in Doha, so I am really happy.

“The thing is, compared to American, French or Italian players, we do not have as many. Obviously, the population is a lot smaller than in the USA, but we really pride ourselves on every player we have.”

Mboko had a marvelous week despite losing to Karolina Muchova in the final of the Masters 1000 event in Doha, and her compatriot Auger-Aliassime had some very kind words to share about the 19-year-old, saying that she has the potential to win many Grand Slams.

“We all support each other so everyone can have the best career possible. We are all very good friends, and on the women’s side as well, it is amazing to see a girl like Mboko being so young and playing such amazing tennis. She is playing at an incredibly high level,” Auger-Aliassime said.

“She really has the chance to have an amazing career and win many Grand Slams, and I will be behind her if she ever needs me. She can take care of herself, she is already a great player, but I will always be here for her.”

Richard Krajicek is arguably the most successful Dutch tennis player ever. The former world No. 4 won Wimbledon in 1996, and in this exclusive interview Bolavip brings his view on some of the most interesting debates in tennis.

The state of the rivalry between Alcaraz and Sinner

For more than a decade, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were competing for all the Grand Slams and had a big rivalry, but in recent years a new rivalry has appeared in tennis. Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the two best players in the world and are currently sitting on the throne, which Krajicek didn’t expect to happen.

“Alcaraz and Sinner are both unbelievable players and they have an unbelievable rivalry. I certainly didn’t expect this to happen to tennis after Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. It is like a miracle,” Krajicek begins the interview with Bolavip in Rotterdam. He says he was a bit worried about what the state of tennis would be like in the new era after the Big Three.

“Of course, we still have Djokovic left. I want to say this is his last year, but with him you never know, probably he has three years left in him. But I was starting to think about what tennis is going to look like, even being a bit worried, and then these two guys arrived on the stage.”

Despite being different types of players and personalities, Krajicek enjoys watching both of them. He says: “Of course, they are very different. Alcaraz is very outgoing and has a lot of variety, whereas Sinner is more introverted and disciplined. Both of them are so popular and are playing amazing tennis, so I never expected this to happen so quickly after the Big Three.”

Krajicek explained further that Sinner, in his opinion, was better than Alcaraz last year, noting that he could just as well have won the French Open, as he had three match points before Alcaraz delivered a sensational comeback.

“Head to head Sinner is behind, but I have to say that in the middle of last year, Sinner was the better player. I mean, he basically won the French Open. I know he didn’t, but you know what I mean,” Krajicek said before explaining that he experienced a change, saying that Sinner played the US Open final completely wrong.

“But then something changed and at the US Open I think Sinner was playing the match completely wrong. He was going for way too many big shots. He was hitting so hard on his forehand and missing all the time. To me that was a sign of how much respect he has for Alcaraz.”

Alcaraz has seven Grand Slam titles, while Sinner has four, but despite this fact, Krajicek says that he considers the players to be on the same level: “For me, Alcaraz and Sinner are on the same level, but somehow I get the feeling Alcaraz is a bit ahead of him right now and Sinner is frustrated because he feels like he needs to go bigger and bigger to win points.”

The former Wimbledon champion believes Alcaraz and Sinner will keep battling each other for the major trophies, as they will constantly improve and push each other to become better players, while he also praised Alcaraz for his accomplishment of completing the career Grand Slam as the youngest player ever.

“I think it will continue to be like this all the time. At one point Alcaraz is better, then Sinner will become better and that continues happening, but in that way they can really push each other. I don’t see someone just running away with all the trophies all of a sudden.

“It was extremely important for Alcaraz to win the Australian Open because he needed those points and the way he did it was out of this world. Of course, it was amazing as well to see how he became the youngest ever to complete the Career Grand Slam. What he did physically and mentally was an amazing accomplishment.”

Federer is the greatest ever but Djokovic is the best

Many tennis fans around the world have probably already noticed that Alcaraz has multiple times in recent years changed his serve, and the most recent change came during the pre-season in 2026, where he changed his service motion in a way that is now very similar to the one Novak Djokovic has had for years, and Krajicek says that is something he particularly likes about the Spaniard.

“What I like about Alcaraz is that he is improving all the time, when he sees that he has to. He improved his serve because he had the feeling that he was chasing Sinner and needed to do that. That is very impressive to me. In that sense, he reminds me a lot of Djokovic, Federer and Nadal, because they always found a way to improve and beat each other.”

Novak Djokovic has 24 Grand Slam titles, Rafael Nadal has 22 and Roger Federer has 20, but Krajicek believes that both Alcaraz and Sinner have the potential to beat Djokovic’s Grand Slam record. However, there is a small question in terms of longevity that they still have to prove.

“Both of them have the potential to beat Novak Djokovic’s Grand Slam record, but the big question is whether they will have careers that last 15 years or longer. That is the only question, because level-wise and mentality-wise they are both able to do it. In my opinion, they are at that level. But the special thing with Djokovic, Federer and Nadal was that they all played more than 15 years at the top, and we don’t know if they are able to do that.”

One of the debates that always comes up in tennis is who the Greatest Of All Time is. Arguably, Djokovic has already closed this debate with his numbers, and some people are even calling him the greatest athlete of all time. However, Krajicek believes that the debate is not only about numbers when speaking about the greatest player.

“I was talking to a friend of mine and we discussed who the greatest and the best athlete of all time is. I think there is a big difference between being the greatest and the best. If we just talk about tennis, to be the greatest is something extra. That is about what somebody meant for the game and for me the greatest tennis player of all time is Roger Federer.”

“What he has done for the game and his popularity say it all, but the best tennis player in history is Novak Djokovic. Without a doubt, I actually think that debate is very clear,” Krajicek says on the GOAT debate.

Rune can come back and win Grand Slams

One of the players who was expected to compete for a top spot in the rankings and Grand Slams was Danish player Holger Rune, but he has yet to do either, and currently he is out with a serious injury, as he tore his Achilles tendon last year in October. Krajicek himself was sidelined for 20 months in the later stages of his career, and the Dutchman has a few pieces of advice for the Dane.

“Maybe my advice would be to stay patient. The biggest mistake I made after being sidelined for 20 months following my elbow surgery was that I came back too quickly. I should have waited at least one more year, at least until I was fully fit. If I could go back in time, I would change it. The stop and start is not good physically or mentally.”

“Mentally I was struggling a lot, because these injuries are horrible. It is better to break something, because then you can take three or six months off, then it will be healed and everything is okay. He has to listen to the doctors and not rush back to the court. Mentally, going back to zero again is the toughest part, so he needs to be 100 percent fit when coming back.”

Krajicek underlined that you lose more than you win by rushing a comeback. He has to trust his body and be 100 percent sure everything is working again. Again, he needs to be patient, maybe even take two months longer than needed, because you lose much more than you win by speeding up the process.

Rune has multiple times explicitly said that he has very good doctors around him and that people should not be worried about him rushing a comeback. He is currently doing his rehab at the Aspetar Hospital in Qatar after having had his surgery and parts of his rehabilitation in Denmark. The surgery was done by the famous Danish doctor Morten Boesen.

Krajicek was clear when speaking about what to expect from Rune when he returns to tennis: “It is not going to be any problem at all for him to come back into the top five and win Grand Slams. He has the level and of course it will take a little bit of time, but Holger is an incredibly hard worker, so for me that is not a problem for him at all.”

The Dutchman is clearly impressed with Rune. However, he can recognize what the Dane has said prior to his injury about him not always being sure about his shot selection, as he has so many shots to choose from due to his qualities as a player.

“Holger always has a lot of options on the court because of his amazing level, especially on the backhand side. You never know if he will go crosscourt, hit it hard down the line, make a dropshot or something else. Sometimes that can be difficult as a very talented player, because when you are able to hit so many shots, the decision making can be hard.

“That is definitely something he has to work on, but he will manage. It was simple for me, because I did not have as many qualities. I just had to serve and come to the net,” Krajicek said before giving Rune one last advice:

“I actually have one piece of advice for him, which might be the most important one. During his injury, he has to watch a lot of tennis. I know he might suffer doing it, but he has to watch a lot of videos, especially of himself, Alcaraz and Sinner. He needs to analyze what they are doing and how he can do it.”

“This is not about technique, because he is already so technically gifted, but it is about strategy on the court. That helped me a lot mentally. I was trying to visualise myself doing what they did,” Krajicek concludes the interview with Bolavip.

Whether Rune will come back and compete with Alcaraz and Sinner, only time will tell, but one thing is sure. Krajicek believes in him and he believes that the current state of tennis is very good, with especially Alcaraz and Sinner on top at the moment.

Bublik beat Hurkacz 6-7, 7-6, 7-5, and even though the scoreline alone was intense, it was Bublik’s on-court antics that drew the spotlight. His comments during the match quickly caught attention not only inside the arena but also across social media, where fans reacted strongly to his remarks.

The Kazakhstani repeatedly directed comments toward Hurkacz throughout the match. While tennis fans are accustomed to Bublik’s emotional outbursts, this time they seemed to resonate more widely than usual. After the match, Bolavip spoke to both players about the incidents and their perspectives.

Hurkacz shuts down: No comment

During the match, Bublik said there are 20 players in the Rotterdam draw who “can’t play tennis,” adding that he was frustrated to draw Hurkacz, against whom he had a negative head-to-head record, with the Polish serve specialist leading 6-1 before this encounter. Despite the pointed nature of the comment, Hurkacz did not want to respond. “I don’t have any comments on that,” he said.

Furthermore, Bublik remarked that Hurkacz’s game consists of “ace, ace, double fault, double fault, shank.” Once again, Hurkacz refused to engage in any back-and-forth regarding the statement, saying: “I don’t want to comment on it.”

A decisive moment in the match came when Hurkacz served for it in the second set and produced three double faults in a single game. It was clearly a disappointing stretch for the Pole, especially given the timing. Reflecting on that moment, Hurkacz said: “Obviously it was disappointing, but I was just trying to focus on the next game. It is always difficult to play against him. He is a great player and it is always a battle.”

Nothing positive to take away from this match

Despite coming away with the victory, Bublik was far from satisfied with his own performance. In fact, he was unusually critical of himself during his conversation with Bolavip. His assessment of the match was blunt from the very beginning.

“Today was a very low-level match. I was lucky to win, I didn’t deserve the win, but he just gave me the match. I didn’t do anything well, he just gave me the win,” Bublik began in his interview.

He continued by explaining how little confidence he had during the contest, even revealing that he mentally prepared for defeat before the turning point. “When I saw the draw I already thought, why should I come here? During the match, I already packed my stuff before he made three double faults, because I was 100% sure I was going to lose, but then he gave me the three double faults. There is nothing positive to take away from this match,” said Bublik, clearly unhappy with his level.

When asked specifically about the comments he made during the match, the world No. 10 insisted they were not meant as criticism but rather as a description of what he felt was happening on court. He emphasized that he was simply stating what he observed about Hurkacz’s playing style.

“I was not criticizing him, I was just stating the fact that he only made aces, double faults and a shank. I looked like Djokovic because I actually had a rhythm, that is it,” Bublik added, making his stance very clear regarding his earlier remarks.

“Well about the comment on the draw, I just meant what I said about getting him in my draw. He is the only player in the draw I have that bad of a head-to-head against. Except for Daniil, but he was seeded, so I couldn’t play him in the first round. I guess that was what I meant.”

Another topic that has sparked a debate in Rotterdam is the balls. Recently, we spoke to Alex de Minaur and Arthur Fils, both of whom expressed frustration with the balls. However, Bublik does not share those concerns and offered a different perspective: “Compared to what we played in Astana, this is a beautiful ball and a beautiful fast court,” implying that he has definitely seen worse in his career.

Last year was unlike anything he had experienced before. Battling a serious back injury, Tsitsipas endured a difficult season that saw him drop out of the top ten, now being ranked just 32 in the world.

In an exclusive interview with Bolavip at the ATP 500 tournament in Rotterdam, Tsitsipas opened up about the toll the past year has taken on him, sharing his honest feelings about injury, uncertainty, and how it affected his love for the game. The Greek star began the interview on a light note, joking: “Did it look like I was moving well on the court? It didn’t always feel like that.”

Feeling like an observer

From September onward, Tsitsipas only participated in one tournament—the Six Kings Slam in Saudi Arabia. Aside from that single match, he was sidelined with injury, something he had never experienced before.

“I had a long period without playing tennis, which I had never had before during my career. I felt like I was away from the court and the competition. Suddenly, I was just an observer of tennis and the ATP Tour, rather than an active participant,” Tsitsipas told Bolavip.

Despite feeling relatively fit during his match against Arthur Rinderknech, Tsitsipas admitted that his back is still giving him trouble, and he’s trying to manage it: “It felt very odd and frustrating because I couldn’t do much. My back is like it is, and there are only so many things I can do. If it refuses to heal, all I can do is wait and consult as many specialists as possible.”

Uncertainty and priorities

Tsitsipas also revealed the emotional toll of his struggles. “I experienced a lot of uncertainty for many months. Even when I won the tournament in Dubai, I wasn’t sure if I could sustain that level or even continue playing. It kept getting worse during the spring, and eventually, I stopped enjoying the game.

“The game becomes less important, and health becomes the most important thing in your life. Even earlier this year, I still had a lot of uncertainty about my future,” Tsitsipas concluded the interview with Bolavip.

Tsitsipas won his match against Arthur Rinderknech and will face Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp next. Given his recent revelations, it will be fascinating to see whether his body can keep up with the demands of the matches.

Medvedev was visibly frustrated with the balls throughout his encounter with the Frenchman, repeatedly stating that tournaments should not buy or promote Head balls. He even claimed that the balls were not properly round.

Now, Alex de Minaur and Arthur Fils have publicly supported Medvedev’s stance, offering a frank assessment of the balls after their match against each other and voicing their clear frustration.

“I have struggled a lot in practice. I have actually been quite frustrated with the balls in practice, which is not like me. I do get what Daniil says about the balls,” de Minaur said in an interview with Bolavip.

It suits the big hitters

Alexander Zverev has previously pointed out that an increasing number of balls used on the ATP Tour favor certain playing styles, and de Minaur agrees with that view.

“They are definitely not my favourite. I don’t think they are anyone’s favourite balls. They are very difficult to control,” the Australian explained to Bolavip before elaborating further:

“It is tough to explain it, but it is a very dead ball. It does suit the big hitters, the players that have a big revolution on the ball and are able to hit through that.”

Despite his criticism, de Minaur emphasized the importance of adapting rather than complaining. “But again, it is what it is. The ball or the court is not going to change and my job is to adapt and do my best and continue doing that.”

ATP has to do better

Arthur Fils was even more direct in his evaluation, stating that the balls fall well below the standards expected at the highest level of professional tennis, something that could impact the course of a game. “They are terrible. Really terrible. The ball is very bad. It is unbelievable.”

“When we are playing at this level, literally playing professionally, very good players, then watching the balls after two games getting bigger and very slow, that is not normal.”

Fils called on the ATP to take responsibility and address the issue. “I don’t know who is in charge of it, maybe ATP or whatever, but they have to do better, because it is not normal to play with these balls at our level,” he said.

Alex de Minaur won the match 7-6, 6-2 against Arthur Fils and will be playing the winner of Aleksandar Vukic and Stan Wawrinka, still with the same controversial balls, though.

When looking at the ATP leaderboard, which shows stats from the different seasons, Rune’s return rating has gone significantly up and in that aspect of the game he ranks as number 27 in the last 52 weeks compared to number 63 in 2024.

That is something that Rune has noticed as well, and now he says that Andre Agassi loved the Dane’s return when they practised together in Washington during the summer.

‘Agassi loved my return’

Rune points out that he knew he was underperforming on his return last season, which is why he and his team were putting a lot of effort into that part of his game in the pre-season.

“I’ve always felt that my return has been really good and one of my biggest strengths. It had a bit of a downfall last year, where I didn’t return as well as I know I can. But especially in the last pre-season, we put a lot of work into the return game to improve the statistics, as you also pointed out,” Rune says and continues:

“It’s always nice to see that the things you work on are improving. I’m also starting to gain more and more confidence to put a bit more weight into my returns and try to put more pressure on the opponent’s second serve.”

Agassi was arguably the best returner of his time and still stands as one of the greatest ever in that discipline, and Rune revealed that the American in particular liked that part of his game.

“Agassi and I talked a lot about my return when we trained together. He really loved it,” he added. “As you say, he had an absolutely insane return, so we could really have some good conversations. Right now, though, I’m mostly in contact with my own team and the people who are close to me.”

Nick Kyrgios coming back would be good for tennis

“Nick Kyrgios has always been very nice to me, so we’ve always had a really good relationship. I don’t know if he’s coming back, but it would be good for tennis because he’s always had some very exciting matches.”

“His top level, back when he played against Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic, was insanely high, so you have to respect that,” Rune said. “I know he’s struggling a lot with his body, so that’s probably the biggest thing he has to overcome. Whether he does or not, time will tell.”

In 2023 the two of them had an exhibition match planned, however Kyrgios was forced to cancel as he got an injury in his foot. For now, a new exhibition match is not planned between the two, but Rune seems ready for the challenge.

“We haven’t talked about a new exhibition match, although that would be fun. I ended up playing one against Monfils instead. Insanely cool guy, whom unfortunately we’ll only get to see for one more year on the Tour,” Rune ends to Bolavip.

On Friday, the Dane is facing Argentinian Tomas Martin Etcheverry. They have faced each other three times, but only one time on the ATP Tour, which Rune won in a very close match in Basel.

The Swede was given an 18-month suspension back in 2023, when he missed out on three whereabouts, which is another term for unannounced doping tests.

Back then, he called his punishment unfair. But eventually, the tennis world has seen other cases with different types of violations where the punishment has been shorter than the one Ymer received.

‘A lot could be said, but I don’t want to get suspended again’

During his postgame press conference, Bolavip asked Ymer about the consistency in doping cases after today’s match, but he didn’t want to comment on the case, as he implied he could get suspended again.

“There is a lot to be said and that could be said, but I don’t want to become suspended again, so I am gonna keep my mouth closed,” Ymer said.

Bolavip then asked Ymer the following question as a follow-up: “Do you fear you would be suspended if you say what you really think?”

“I do not want to comment further on it. I don’t want to put myself in a situation where people that I don’t… Yeah, I do not want to answer,” Ymer replied.

Bolavip would have liked to ask more questions about what Ymer meant and the transparency in these cases, but the interview ended on that note.

Korda has been dealing with a lot of injuries over the past year, and the former world No. 15 has dropped drastically in the rankings. The American revealed that he wasn’t practicing at all before he took a break from tennis following the French Open.

Despite the tough period, Korda produced a very high level on Monday against Popyrin, and the American was happy with the win when we talked to him immediately after the match.

Tough match against ‘tricky’ Popyrin

Popyrin is a former Masters 1000 winner, and the Australian always seems to be a tricky opponent, which Korda also mentioned after the match.

“It was very tough. It is always tough to play Popyrin. We have played three times and the last time we played was in a semi of a Masters 1000, and he is just an extremely highly skilled tennis player,” Korda told Bolavip after the match.

“He has an incredible serve, he is a good mover and has a good forehand. It was very tricky and I was lucky at some moments. I served horrendously. It’s pretty tough when you don’t have a first serve, but I am happy.”

Korda admits he didn’t train for a long period

The former world No. 15 took almost three months off after the French Open this year, as he had struggled a lot with injuries. Korda now admits that he didn’t train at all during the entire year leading up to the French Open.

“I am feeling pretty good,” he said. “I have had a lot of injuries, but now its more mental than anything. It’s about starting up the machine again and trying to win some ugly matches.”

Korda makes it clear that he is still motivated to improve. However, it has been very tough off the court in 2025: “I think the motivation is still there, more so just getting down on yourself all the time. That hurts a little bit but I have definitely gone through a lot of different emotions in the last year, but I am definitely motivated and I want to keep playing and hopefully raise my level.

“I mean.. Practicing… Honestly, before I took those months off, honestly I didn’t practice the whole year. It has been like an hour on the court every single day, no fitness really. I was not feeling great, it was definitely not a good feeling. Hopefully it is past me now.”

Korda faces either Kamil Majchrzak or Filip Misolic in the second round in Stockholm, where Bolavip also interviewed Casper Ruud this week.

The 26-year-old won his biggest title this season when he secured the Masters 1000 title in Madrid, and the tennis star calls it a memorable year. However, he is not fully satisfied with the way he has performed in 2025 so far.

But Ruud is still aiming to end a long season with a spot in the ATP Finals, despite currently being nearly 1,000 points away from the number eight spot in the live race to Turin.

Speaking of ending a long season, Ruud pointed out the fact that the ATP calendar is still too long, specifically mentioning the Paris Masters as an issue. He also commented on the economic motivation to play as many tournaments as possible, as the players get a cut in the bonus if they miss out on a mandatory event.

A season of highs and lows for Ruud

As mentioned earlier, Ruud won the biggest title of his career, but on the other hand, the Norwegian failed to win back-to-back matches in the Grand Slams this season. Hence, Ruud is not super satisfied with his 2025 season.

“It has been a mixture of highs and lows,” Ruud tells Bolavip. “This is the first season where I have experienced being out a few weeks in a row with my knee. That was a new challenge, obviously.

“It was a memorable season because of the Madrid title, but I am not sitting here being super satisfied overall. There were too many early losses in tournaments, but I try to learn from those. Like I said, it will be memorable because I won the biggest title in my career this year, and I was playing some really good tennis during that time.”

All or nothing mentality

The 26-year-old still has a chance of reaching the ATP Finals, however, it will require some massive results at the end of the season. He says that he is still hoping to qualify for the prestigious event.

“The season is not over yet, and I hope I can finish it strong and maybe climb my way towards having a chance to reach the ATP Finals. But it is going to be really tough, so I am just trying to play well these last three weeks, and then we will see after Paris,” Ruud adds.

“If you are finishing 11 or 15, I mean, what is going to make the difference? Nothing, in my opinion, so it is kind of all or nothing at this point. I am going to try to use that as a motivation and give it a final push.

“There are other players in the same situation. The race is always like this. I will focus on one match at a time and not on points and that stuff, because last year I was thinking too much about points.”

Ruud understands Djokovic

Novak Djokovic recently made a comment about the scheduling, which got a lot of attention, with one of the things being said that the players are not united enough and investing enough time into changing things.

Multiple players have recently criticized the number of tournaments and matches, and Ruud, who has played 47 matches this season and dealt with an injury, backs Djokovic.

“Of course, Novak has a point,” Ruud explains. “He has more experience than any other player. Sure, you can pick and choose in a way, because we are not hired by the ATP, we are bosses of our own schedule. What I criticized and talked about at the French Open was that there is an economic motivation to play and not skip any Masters 1000s with the bonus and everything.

“But yeah, sure, if you are in the top 10, top 15, you make a lot of money, but you also spend a lot of money with all the expenses that you have, so you don’t want to miss out on any money if you don’t need to.”

Ruud continues by saying that there is an economic motivation to play, as the players will be punished financially if they don’t play the mandatory events.

“I know that if you are not healthy or not eligible to play, you won’t be put in jail if you don’t play, but there is also an economic incentive to play, and some people care more about it than others. But I think the season is long,” he says.

Planning changes

While the schedule has been demanding for Ruud, the Norwegian is taking it as a lesson to prepare things differently next season, hoping to find more consistencty throughout the year.

“To have a mandatory event like Paris that late in the season makes the season really, really long. It’s the same for everyone, but going forward I will plan the schedule a bit differently, maybe skipping a few events here and there.

“I had a very hectic 3–4 years since I reached the top 10. I played a lot of events, and I played some exhibitions in the preseason, so those are some choices that I have made, which I look back on and think I shouldn’t have done. For the future, that is something I will take into consideration.”

Ruud is seeded as number two, with Holger Rune being the top-seeded player in Stockholm, where Bolavip will be present all week.

During the coverage of the Davis Cup in Marbella, Bolavip was invited to an event in where representatives from Spain’s 2000 Davis Cup team was there to show the original, and after that we talked exclusively to Alex Corretja.

During the interview, Corretja discussed Carlos Alcaraz’s phenomonal season, just as he also commented on the importance of having a player like him in Spain.

Corretja calls Alcaraz “a blessing, nearly a miracle”

Corretja smiles as he mentions Alcaraz as a true blessing and gift to the country. He even compares the Spaniard to Rafael Nadal.

“It’s a blessing to have a player like Carlos Alcaraz. He is truly a gift to the sport. It is nearly a miracle to be honest. We have had so many great players in the past, but after Rafael Nadal, our legend of the sport, all of a sudden we have Carlos who is comparable,” Corretja tells Bolavip and continues:

“He is winning Grand Slams, he is the world No. 1. It is something very unexpected and very fortunate for us to have him.”

Corretja: “Everybody loves Alcaraz”

Many people would probably argue that Alcaraz, at this moment in time, is among the most popular players, and Corretja says that his impression is as well that everyone loves Alcaraz.

“It is good for our sport and our country. I think we really need to appreciate it, because what he is doing is very, very difficult and he is only 22 years old and has already won six Grand Slams,” he adds.

Corretja is certain that Alcaraz will go on to win many more Grand Slams: “He will win many more Grand Slams in the future. Everybody loves him, because he is so natural. He is so humble and simple, and he says whatever he feels. He is very straightforward and acts very well. He is very unique.”

Carlos Alcaraz is currently preparing for the Laver Cup as he pulled out of the Davis Cup for Spain.

Holger Rune’s season has been full of ups and downs. On one hand, he won the title in Barcelona and reached the final at the Masters 1000 tournament in Indian Wells.

On the other hand, the season has also included several setbacks, among them two early exits at the latest Grand Slam tournaments, Wimbledon and the US Open.

The lack of consistency has prompted the Dane to test the waters and try out a new racket. But when Bolavip asked him about it, he didn’t want to reveal too much although he did confirm that he is currently testing different rackets.

“That’s true… It’s a good question… I need to think about how I want to answer that. It’s fine, you’re allowed to ask, but yeah… I’ve tried a few different rackets to see what suits me best. That’s all I have to say about it,” Rune told Bolavip.

‘I know I can beat Alcaraz and Sinner’

Holger Rune has been very clear about what he desires. The former junior Grand Slam winner wants to be world No. 1 and win Grand Slam titles.

That hasn’t happened yet, and speaking to BolaVip, the Dane admits that he sometimes feels a bit lost on the court when it comes to finding his identity.

“I feel like I’m lacking some consistency in my identity as a tennis player. Often, I go into matches with a relatively offensive mindset, while other times I come in with a grinder’s mindset,” Rune told Bolavip, and continued:

“That’s the danger. When I’m able to hit so many different shots on a tennis court, it can also be a bit confusing. I try to keep it as simple as possible.”

Still, this doesn’t shake his belief that he can dethrone Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

“Of course it’s inspiring to see Carlos (Alcaraz, ed.) and Jannik (Sinner, ed.) play at that level, but I also know that I can beat them,” the Dane concluded to Bolavip.

Davis Cup without Alcaraz

For now, however, Holger Rune won’t be facing the world No. 1, as the Spaniard withdrew from the Davis Cup. This makes the Dane the highest-ranked player across both teams from Spain and Denmark.

The first match will be played on Saturday, with Holger Rune opening against Pablo Carreno Busta.

Bolavip are present in Copenhagen, where the Davis Cup clash between Denmark and Serbia takes place Friday and Saturday. Ahead of that series, we had the opportunity to speak to former No. 12 in the world and current coach for the Serbian Davis Cup team, Viktor Troicki.

Here, he shared his thoughts on the drama that circulated around Djokovic during the Australian Open. Djokovic picked up an injury during his match against Carlos Alcaraz, and despite winning that match, he couldn’t finish the following match against Alexander Zverev, where he was forced to retire due to a muscle tear injury.

Troicki slams ‘disrespectful and disappointing’ behavior towards Djokovic

Immediately after the Serbian’s retirement against Zverev, the crowd were booing Djokovic, which Viktor Troicki noticed and found very disrespectful and disappointing.

“They were booing him after the injury, which I don’t think happens in any sport. Not even in soccer, where the crowd is normally more wild. When someone gets injured in soccer, even an opponent, they will applaud you and wish you to get better,” he initially says to Bolavip and continues by saying:

“That’s why it was surprising to see, especially in a place where he has played his best tennis and has won 10 titles, that he got booed after the injury. It was really disrespectful and disappointing.

“They are booing him in the crowd, which was not happening before in Australia. I think they were admiring his results more and greeting the champion with more respect in the past.”

Troicki claims Channel 9 reporter should be ‘fired’ and ‘banned’ from covering tennis

The famous Channel Nine reporter Tony Jones was a part of one of the most widely covered situations, after he claimed in the studio that Djokovic has been and is overrated, just as he ended his comments by saying “kick him out”. Something he said in front of a big Serbian crowd, which Djokovic found insultive and offensive.

“There was the situation around channel nine, which I noticed as well. If I had hired that journalist (Tony Jones, ed.), I would have fired him straight away. He would never work in sports again,” says Viktor Troicki.

“I think they are treating Novak worse and worse. It is surprising and disappointing to see the greatest player of all time experiencing so many bad things happening in Australia again. After Covid and what they did to him a few years ago, it has never been the same.”

Later on, Tony Jones has given Djokovic an official apology, however Serbian coach Viktor Troicki thinks the reporter should face bigger consequences.

“To mock an athlete during the tournament is unacceptable. I don´t think an apology is enough. I think he should be banned for life from covering tennis”, he ends the interview with Bolavip.

Davis Cup will be without Djokovic

Despite being the name who got the most attention at the media day in Copenhagen, Djokovic won’t actually play for Serbia in Denmark, due to the injury he picked up against Zverev.

The matches take place both Friday and Saturday in the Royal Arena in Copenhagen, where Denmark have seen their chances increase due to the absence of Novak Djokovic.

This round in Davis Cup is the 1st qualifier round and the winner qualifies for 2nd qualifiers, where it is going to be decided, which eight teams will play in the Davis Cup finals.