The ATP 500 Barcelona Open has started in Catalunya in the north of Spain. Holger Rune out of Denmark is the 6th seed at the event. Rune will be squaring off with the Spanish wild card Albert Ramos Vinolas. Holger has never beaten Albert on the ATP tour.
The 37 year old veteran from Barcelona has faced Holger Rune twice on the tour. Both matches were played back in 2021 on clay, just as today. Albert won them both in three sets. The first one in Buenos Aires and the second one in Barcelona, fittingly enough. Ramos Vinolas has won four titles in his career so far (Gstaad, Cordoba, Estoril and Bastad). Albert has struggled a lot in the last couple of seasons. His current ranking is at 234, his best ever was at number 17 back in the summer of 2017. The left handed veteran is a grinder on the tour. He never gives up.
The match today versus Rune will be the first one on the main tour this season for Albert. As a matter of fact this is his first match on the ATP tour since the US Open of 2024 where he lost to Berrettini in the opening round. He had a record of three wins and nine losses in 2024. Ramos Vinolas has announced that this is his last season on the tour. Albert tried to qualify for the ATP 1000 Rolex Masters in Monte Carlo last week but did not succeed.
Holger Rune is currently ranked at the 13th position in the world of tennis. He was at number 4 in the summer of 2023. Rune from the town of Gentofte Denmark is 21 years of age. Just as his 16 years older opponent today he has a total of four titles on the ATP tour. Holger played last week in Monte Carlo but had to retire from his first round match against Nuno Borges. Rune has a record of eleven wins and nine losses so far this season on the tour.
Rune started out his season with a first round exit in Brisbane. Holger faced Sinner at the Australian Open in the round of 16 in Melbourne and lost the match in four sets. Rune won and lost one match when Denmark squared of with Serbia (without Djokovic) in the Davis Cup. Then Holger had three straight second round exits at Rotterdam, Buenos Aires and Acapulco. The best entry of the season came in the Californian desert for Rune. He reached final at Indian Wells but lost it to Draper in straight sets. Holger lost in the second round at the ATP 1000 Miami Masters. Rune has been mixing it up pretty much when it comes to his results this season. The crowd will give a big support to the local hero, Ramos Vinolas.
