Early out: Casper Ruud fails in Indian Wells
Nothing really gets Casper Ruud rolling. After his opening win against Diego Schwarztmann, the Norwegian had to admit defeat to Chilean Christian Garin in two sets in Indian Wells.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Mar 12, 2023, 09:33 pm
That's the thing with the favorites in Indian Wells. First, Stefanos Tsitsipas said goodbye to the tournament in his first match. The No. 2 seed lost to Jordan Thompson in three sets. Now number 3 on the seeding list has also been hit in the Californian desert. Casper Ruud lost in the round of 16 against Christian Garin from Chile in straight sets 4:6 and 6:7 (2:7).
If you look at Ruud's wave of success at the beginning of last year, you can't really tell that much difference in his game compared to the current Ruud. Even when things are going well for him, he rarely shoots his opponent off the field. But then he makes the right shots at the right time and thus the important points at important moments. The French Open finalist from 2022 has currently lost that. As soon as it gets tight, he wobbles too often. Especially for a player in the top 5. If he doesn't get this under control soon, he will quickly leave this ranks again.
So it remains the case that in the absence of Novak Djokovic no player soars to his heights. Daniil Medvedev excepted. But there is a significant gap in men's tennis between these two players and the rest.
