Happy to be back in Turin, Ruud believes ‘anything can happen’

pAfter missing the cut in 2023, a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/casper-ruud/rh16/overview'Casper Ruud/a is set to return to the 2024 a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/nitto-atp-finals/605/overview'Nitto ATP Finals/a. The 25-year-old, who made the semi-finals in 2021, and final in 2022 is excited to see how things unfold in Turin./p
pldquo;Anything can happen, [when] you have the best players in the world,rdquo; said Ruud, speaking to ATP Media before the action begins on Sunday./p
pSet for his third appearance at the prestigious a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/nitto-atp-finals/605/overview'Nitto ATP Finals/a, Ruud appreciates the opportunity to go head-to-head with the very best in Turin. The No. 6 Ruud, placed in the a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/john-newcombe/n044/overview'John Newcombe/a Group, alongside No. 2 a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/alexander-zverev/z355/overview'Alexander Zverev/a, No. 3 a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/carlos-alcaraz/a0e2/overview'Carlos Alcaraz/a, and No. 8 a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/andrey-rublev/re44/overview'Andrey Rublev/a, reflected on his opponents./p
pldquo;I am going to see an in form player, [has had an] incredible year,rdquo; said Ruud, opening up about Zverev, who recently won his seventh ATP Masters 1000 title at the a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/paris/352/overview'Rolex Paris Masters/a and climbed to the No. 2 spot in the PIF ATP Rankings. ldquo;He is going to be full of confidence, just came from Paris victory. I am going to do my best to somehow stop him./p
pldquo;[He has a] great serve, beautiful backhand. When he is on also with his forehand, it is really tough to play him. Because you feel like you are getting shot at from both [the] forehand and the backhand. [I will] try to neutralise his game as much as I can, but it is going to be difficult.rdquo; /p
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pThe Norwegian will kickstart his campaign against Alcaraz on Monday in the day session. Alcaraz, who has won four titles this season, leads the pairrsquo;s Lexus ATP Head2Head series 4-0. /p
pldquo;His career [is] already close to legendary,rdquo; said Ruud of Alcaraz. ldquo;I love watching him play, he is so great for the sport. I donrsquo;t necessarily always love playing him because [he is] really tough. It typically comes down to fun points. He is so electric, he can hit any shot in the world.rdquo; /p
pDiscussing his good friend Rublev, Ruud said he looks up to the 27-year-old.
ldquo;He just rips the ball from both sides. He is such a kind person,rdquo; he said. ldquo;I looked up to him because he is a year older than me and he got to the Top 10 and started winning big tournaments way before I did.rdquo; /p
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pA solid start to the season propelled Ruud to the third spot in the PIF ATP Live Race to Turin by the end of a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/roland-garros/520/overview'Roland Garros/a in June, where he reached the semi-finals. Earlier in the year, the 25-year-old won the a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/barcelona/425/overview'Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell/a and a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/geneva/322/overview'Gonet Geneva Open/a, and finished finalist at the a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/monte-carlo/410/overview'Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters/a./p
pAt the end of a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/roland-garros/520/overview'Roland Garros/a, the 12-time tour-level titlist caught a parasite that hampered his performance for the next few weeks. Struggling to regain his usual energy levels post-illness and having accumulated fewer points in the rest of the season, he dropped to the seventh spot. /p
pldquo;Irsquo;m a bit disappointed that I was not able to keep it up because I was in a good position to finish even higher," he said. But [it] didnrsquo;t happen. Had a bit of trouble in summer and fall. But itrsquo;s okay. Wersquo;re here, and that is the most important thing.rdquo;/p
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