Holger Rune recently returned to tennis after almost a year out due to injury.
The Danish star ruptured his Achilles in Stockholm last season and didn’t return until after the 2026 US Open. Rune played his first matches in almost a year at the Davis Cup, winning twice in singles as Denmark defeated Bulgaria 3-2.
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He hasn’t been quite as successful on his return to ATP Tour action, though. Rune lost to Kyrian Jacquet in the first round of the Japan Open and to Daniel Altmaier in the first round of the Shanghai Masters.
Rune lost in Shanghai before Novak Djokovic played his first match, but the Serb was still happy to share some kind words about the Dane during his pre-tournament press conference.
Novak Djokovic says Holger Rune needs to play more matches to ‘get going’ after injury layoff
“I’m very, very happy that he’s back. I like Holger [Rune]. I also like playing him. We always have great battles, really. You know, I watched highlights of that match where he got injured and what happened, and, you know, the replay of that. It was horrible to watch, honestly,” said Djokovic.
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“I’ve been in touch with him several times while he was absent from the tour. We went back and forth on different topics. Of course, I’ve been keeping track of his return. I was very glad that he was able to come back and make his comeback at Davis Cup in his country, so that was very nice.
“I saw that last night he had a tough battle and tough loss. But, you know, it will take some time, I guess. It’s really relative. It’s very individual, you know. His injury is one of the worst injuries that you can have. It took him away for a year almost. The match play is completely different than any practice sets or, you know, practice competition that you are getting.
Holger Rune’s 2026 record (2-2)
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Davis Cup [WIN] vs Iliyan Radulov, 6-3, 6-3
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Davis Cup [WIN] vs Grigor Dimitrov, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6
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Japan Open 1R [LOSS] vs Kyrian Jacquet, 3-6, 1-6
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Shanghai Masters 1R [LOSS] vs Daniel Altmaier, 6-1, 6-7, 4-6
“I mean, it’s really difficult to compare. Because the nerves kick in, and then, you know, you have your score being called. And then all of a sudden every shot, every point matters, and you’re afraid to miss. Then you get tense and stressed, and that affects the whole game, right? So he just needs to get more matches going, and I hope that he is going to find his best game very soon.”
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Rune, now ranked outside the top 1,000, must use his protected ranking or receive wild cards to attend ATP events. Luckily for Rune, as a former world number four, he shouldn’t have much trouble asking for wild cards.
Only time will tell how long it will take Rune to climb back up the rankings, but it will certainly help to know he has the support of 24-time Grand Slam champion, Djokovic, who himself, has struggled physically this year.
What’s next for Novak Djokovic and Holger Rune?
Rune will play in Stockholm next, the event where he suffered his serious injury 12 months ago. Perhaps a deep run in Sweden is just what he needs to return to form.
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Djokovic, on the other hand, will begin his Shanghai Masters campaign against Hubert Hurkacz later this week. The Serb leads the Pole 8-0 in their head-to-head and will be the favourite to reach the third round.
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