All in all, Ruud broke the home favorite six times and hit three times as many forehand winners (12 to 4).
“It’s sort of easier to hit more full swings when you’re in Rome than in Madrid because the ball doesn’t fly as much. You feel like it goes down and in,” Ruud explained in his press conference. “It’s a good feeling obviously. I think return and baseline game is even better than what it was in Madrid.”
The timing of the 27-year-old’s run could not be better. The 25th-ranked Ruud is projected to climb back up to No. 17, right behind Darderi. He can rise two more places by tasting victory Sunday, but either way, he’s ensured himself a Top 16 seed at Roland Garros with the previous withdrawals of No. 2-ranked Carlos Alcaraz and No. 10-ranked Lorenzo Musetti.
For Ruud, his performance against Jiri Lehecka was the catalyst for turning a corner on the confidence meter and beginning an upward momentum swing.
“From there I’ve been trying to focus on the things that went well there and keep it going, improve even more if I can. Every day I felt a bit better and better,” he said. “The couple of sets against Khachanov and today are some of the best I felt on court in a long time. So that’s a good feeling.”
