Tennis

“Looks To Have Found His Game Again”: Simona Halep’s Ex-Coach Names 4 Potential Grand Slam Winners for 2024 Ft. Former Protege Holger Rune

Puranjay Dixit
|PublishedDec 17, 2023

"Holger Rune Better Win a Slam till October!" - Fans Troll Saudi Arabia For Including Beleaguered Dane in '6 Kings Slam' Alongside Nadal, Djokovic

Aug 31, 2021; Flushing, NY, USA; Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune of Denmark after a second set winner against Novak Djokovic of Serbia on day two of the 2021 U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

Patrick Mouratoglou, who has worked with Simona Halep and Serena Williams, picked four players he believes will challenge for Grand Slam titles in 2024. Apart from the obvious choice of Novak Djokovic, he named Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and his former pupil, Holger Rune. The Frenchman opined the Dane has regained his touch under new coach Boris Becker.

Rune reached a career-high World No.4 rank before finishing the year at No.8. After a decent start, he faced a slump after Wimbledon. His terrible form ended only after onboarding Becker as a coach. After hiring the German in October, he made it to the semi-finals of the Swiss Indoors and quarter-finals of the Paris Masters.

Speaking to Eurosport, Mouratoglou, who worked with Rune from 2016 to April 2023, said the 20-year-old has found his mojo and pegged him as a potential Grand Slam champion for 2024. Additionally, he named Djokovic, Sinner, and Alcaraz.

“I see four guys that are really contending. The first one for sure is Novak, but the three others [Alcaraz, Sinner, Rune] they are definitely potential Grand Slams winners next year.”

The renowned coach elaborated on Rune’s journey, reminiscing how he was ranked much lower last year. The youngster was outside the top 25 before his stunning 2022 Paris Masters victory, which boosted him into the top 10.

Mouratoglou believes Rune is getting back to the level he displayed late last season. He claimed the Dane is top three in the world on clay, adding he has improved to be similarly elite in recent matches.

“The progress was incredible. If you remember, just over a year ago he was at No. 30 in the world. And now I feel that he has come back to his best level, to the level he was playing last year during the indoor season, or even this year during the clay season. If you look at his results on clay, he was playing top three in the world, and the same when he was playing the indoor season. I think he came back to that level. That’s what I feel from the last matches I’ve seen him play.”

Mouratoglou praised Rune’s association with Becker, saying he looks confident. He said he expects the player to put in good performances in the upcoming season.

“I think the partnership with Boris is working well. I can see he feels good. If he looks confident again, he looks to have found his game again. So I expect from him to play really great first at UTS this weekend and then next year.”

Holger Rune needs one big season to be a genuine Grand Slam contender

Holger Rune achieved a career-high rank of World No.4 in 2023 with some good showings in the European campaign. However, he faltered later on and finished the season as No.8, scraping into the ATP Finals. His only title this season was his second consecutive ATP 250 Munich Open. He needs a breakout season just like Alcaraz and Sinner had in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

Carlos Alcaraz made the world take notice of him by winning two ATP Masters titles and the US Open in the 2022 season. And the following season, Jannik Sinner had a breakthrough one (even though he did not end up winning a single Grand Slam title). The Italian won his first ATP 1000 Masters title, ended up as the finalist at the ATP Finals 2023 and finished the season as a Davis Cup winner. Currently, he is ranked No.4 in the world.

Jannik Sinner is tipped to end his Grand Slam drought in 2024, after many saw him qualify for the semifinals of the Wimbledon 2023 tournament. It continues to be Sinner’s best performance in any Grand Slam that he has played in, so far. Sinner went on to clinch two ATP 500 trophies and two wins over Djokovic in a span of two weeks, making him a potential future superstar of the game.

Alcaraz and Sinner’s progress will be closely watched in 2024. Rune could match up to their level, seeing the impact Boris Becker has already been made. The trio is expected to challenge Novak Djokovic for big titles and Grand Slams.

About the author

Puranjay Dixit

Puranjay is a Tennis Journalist at The SportsRush. He has written more than 300 articles on the sport. Ask him anything about tennis and he is ready to come up with well-crafted answers. He has been following tennis ever since his parents introduced him to the game when he was 10. His favourite player may be Rafael Nadal, but ask him who's the GOAT, and he'll say, Novak Djokovic. He may be pursuing a degree in an unrelated field, but creating quality sports content remains his first love.