United Cup: Casper Ruud brings Norway-Netherlands on par
SYDNEY: Norwegian Casper Ruud got his 2024 season off to a quick start at the United Cup on Saturday with a 6-3, 6-4 win against Dutchman Talon Griekspoor to set up a mixed doubles match in Sydney’s opening clash.
Ruud, the No. 11 player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings and the highest-ranked player in Group F, converted three of his seven break points to seal victory after an hour and 12 minutes.
It was the pair’s second Lexus ATP head-to-head clash after Ruud won in a final set tie-break in Acapulco in 2021. Grixpur had won only two of its matches below tour-level (in 2015 and 2019 respectively).
The Dutchman enjoyed his best season in 2023, reaching a career-high world No. 21 in November. He qualified the Netherlands for the United Cup for the first time, but was only able to win 62 percent of his service points against Ruud.
In the first match of the competition, Arantxa Ras gave the Netherlands a winning start by defeating Malen Helgo 7-6(4), 6-1 and giving her team a 1-0 lead in the first match of Group F. United Cup.
Despite the two being ranked 478 in the WTA rankings, 24-year-old Helgo, who made her Hologic WTA Tour debut at this event 12 months ago, gave her higher-ranked opponent a tough fight in a first set that lasted more than an hour. Gave.
The world number 51 Russian led 4-2 in the first game, but lost the next three games and was held in the first set twice. Both times, she advanced in the challenge: after trailing 5–4, she remained at love, and after trailing 6–5, she held on at 15. She opened the ensuing tiebreak by winning four straight points – and although Helgo got within one at 4–3 and 5–4 – the Russian took a set lead on her first set point.
It was all Russia in set two, breaking Helgo after saving a break point at 1-1 when the Norwegian had three chances to go ahead at 2-2 and rarely looked back. However, the last game became complicated, as Russia needed a total of five match points to secure an early win.
