Holger Rune might be ascending once again. Maybe he is re-ascending? Whatever the phrase should be, Carlos Alcaraz was likely stunned by the Dane's level of excellence during their Barcelona Open final on Easter day. Rune did not just slide by Alcaraz; he dominated him. The 7-6(6) 6-2 score speaks volumes.
Rune outmatched Alcaraz and outhit him, too. The surprise is that while Alcaraz normally beats himself at times by taking far too many chances, Rune simply outright destroyed the Spaniard. He hit the kind of shots that Alcaraz usually does that are awe-inspiring, so in essence, he out-Carlos'd Carlos. That is amazing.
In winning the Barcelona Open, Rune gained 400 points and will move back into the top 10 when the ATP rankings are released on Monday. After shuffling for a year or so, sometimes letting his arrogance get in the way, Rune played a more humble brand of tennis in Barcelona.
Holger Rune was great but the closing ceremony at Barcelona Open was awful
If he continues to do so, he has the skills to make the top of tennis into a trio that includes him, Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner.
The problem with the final match came afterward, and before the end-of-match speeches from Rune and Sinner. While many tournaments will do a bit of self-congratulatory things between when a match ends and the trophy presentation, the 2025 Barcelona Open put on a full-fledged concert. This was made all the weirder because the performance took place on the clay court.
The singers doing the show weren't bad vocalists. The issue was the songs chosen for the outing. There was some disco, some Elton John, and some huge hits from the 1970s, and none of it had to do with tennis. It was ridiculous.
Social media noticed as well.
Barcelona Open Cringe Closing ceremony
— Fausto Johann Lopez (@FJLR) April 20, 2025
Yep, exactly. Cringe-worthy it was. Again, it was the choices of songs and why event organizers thought to add a concert in between the match and the trophy presentation. Awkward.
This ceremony at the Barcelona Open, wtf is going on 😂😂😂
— Dos Santos (@Kevin5996) April 20, 2025
Exactly. What was going on...or, at least, the thinking behind it. At least, Rune had a logical way of explaining how he defeated Alcaraz. (The loss was doubly worse for Alcaraz as he will fall to No. 3 on the ATP tour after regaining No. 2 for a week.)
Holger Rune on beating Carlos Alcaraz in Barcelona final
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) April 20, 2025
“I told myself, ‘what did Novak do when he beat him?’ I kind of played it in my mind... the Olympic final. Amazing match. I thought to myself 'let's try to play that kind of style'
pic.twitter.com/pgyX9utdYR
The victory was Rune's first in 13 matches against top-five opponents. Let's see if he can keep the trend going.