After several coaching turmoils in recent months, world no. 7 Holger Rune placed a safe bet and returned to Patrick Mouratoglou! Holger and Patrick will start their third stint together, as the famous coach embraced a full-time job with a player he knows so well. Rune is thrilled to work with Mouratoglou again, achieving his career-best results under him and hoping for more, starting from Indian Wells. Holger met Patric seven years ago, training at his Academy and learning from a high-profile coach’s vast experience. With a short break, Rune and Mouratoglou worked together between October 2022 and August 2023. The young Dane claimed his first Masters 1000 crown under the Frenchman and became world no. 4 last summer.
Holger reached the final in Monte Carlo and Rome last year, followed by the quarter-final at Roland Garros and Wimbledon and the semi-final at Queen’s. Rune will seek more titles under Mouratoglou and his assistant, Kenneth Carlsen. Mike James and Lapo Beccherini are also in the coaching staff. Holger and Patrick are already training at the Academy, and they will travel together to Acapulco, where the young gun reached the semi-final last year. Rune and Mouratoglou parted ways in August last year, and the young gun spent the previous half a year seeking a perfect solution, which did not happen. Holger announced Boris Becker as his new coach in October, working with a six-time Major winner during the indoor swing.
Holger Rune & Patrick Mouratoglou, Australian Open 2023© Kelly Defina / Stringer – Getty Images Sport
The Dane experienced a tight loss at the Paris Masters to Novak Djokovic and failed to reach the ATP Finals semi-final following defeats to Djokovic and Jannik Sinner. Meanwhile, Holger added Severin Luthi to his coaching team, embracing two high-profile coaches ahead of 2024. However, the German did not travel with the Dane to Australia, which raised concerns over their partnership. Luthi stepped in, and Holger kicked off the new season in Brisbane and Melbourne. The twist in the tale came at the end of January and the first week of February, as Becker and Luthi stepped down as Rune’s coaches, citing the lack of time to commit fully. Holher added Carlsen to his coaching team before rejoining forces with Mouratoglou, finding the final solution.
Holger Rune will work with Patrick Mouratoglou from Acapulco.
Holger Rune & Patrick Mouratoglou, Paris 2022© Julian Finney / Staff – Getty Images Sport
Holger started the year in Brisbane, beating Max Purcell, Alexander Shevchenko, James Duckworth and Roman Safiulin and reaching the final. In a battle of the top seeds, Grigor Dimitrov defeated Rune 7-6, 6-4 in two hours and 16 minutes, spoiling the young gun’s perfect start to the season. The Bulgarian saved all three break points and earned nine break chances. The Dane saved eight, but it was not enough to keep him safe after dropping a tight opener. Rune had to dig deep in the opening round in Melbourne, edging Yoshihito Nishioka 6-2, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 after nearly three and a half hours. Rune made a great start before Nishioka raised his level, challenging a better-ranked rival in the remaining three sets.
Holger landed 70 winners and broke the rival’s resistance with an early return game in the fourth set. The Dane faced world no. 122 Arthur Cazaux in the second round and experienced a shocking 7-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 loss. Cazaux threw everything he had at his rival, landing 50 winners and taming his strokes nicely. Holger struggled a bit with pain in his knee, giving his best to stay in touch but falling in four sets. Rune lost a tight opener and fell two sets to love behind, moving closer to the exit door. The Dane recovered in the third set before the Frenchman sealed the deal in the fourth for a career-best triumph. Seeking matches, Rune returned to Europe and asked for the Montpellier wild card.
Holger Rune & Patrick Mouratoglou, Paris 2022© Julian Finney / Staff – Getty Images Sport
Holger beat Pablo Llamas Ruiz 7-5, 6-2, playing well since the closing stages of the opener and moving into the quarter-final. His next rival was Michael Mmoh, and the Dane prevailed 7-6, 6-4, firing 17 aces and losing serve once. He broke Mmoh two times from nine opportunities, doing enough to seal the deal in straight sets. Holger fought for a place in the final against Borna Coric and experienced a setback. The Dane trailed 6-3, 4-1 before retiring due to pain in his arm, not risking more serious issues. Rune competed at the Ultimate Tennis Showdown in Osle and headed to Rotterdam for the ATP 500 event. Holger prevailed over Roman Safiullin 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 in the first round and met Alexandre Shevchenko in the second. The Kazakh avenged the Brisbane loss, beating the Dane 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 and sending the young gun packing. Rune missed Los Cabos and will compete in Acapulco next week, with Patrick Mouratoglou returning to his coaching box.
“I am excited to resume working with Patrick. With him, I have achieved some of the greatest triumphs of my career so far, and I can not wait for us to chase Major titles together. Moving ahead, we have had good talks on how our collaboration should unfold, and we have agreed on a strong setup that creates the best conditions for my performance,” Holger Rune said.
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