Holger Rune’s loss at the Rotterdam Open has been linked to a recent bout of flu, according to his team.
The Danish world No.14 lost in the second round on Thursday to Pedro Martinez who is currently ranked 30 places lower than him. It is Rune’s fourth defeat so far this season (including Davis Cup) with three of those losses being to players ranked outside the top 20. In contrast, he has won five matches so far in 2025 with his best win (in terms of ranking) being over Lorenzo Sonego in the first round of Rotterdam.
Speaking about Rune’s latest defeat, his mother Aenke confirmed the tennis star has been struggling with illness.
“He had a good bout of flu in Denmark after the Davis Cup, so he wasn’t feeling optimally in the match against Sonego either,” Aneke told tv2.dk.
“He had a high fever and was seen by a doctor, after which he stayed in bed all day.”
Rune also touched on his current health in a post on social media platform X by writing that he ‘couldn’t hold his fever down‘ before adding that he ‘hopes to be fresh soon.’
Rune is scheduled to travel to South America for the Argentina Open where he is the second highest-ranked player entered into the draw after Alexander Zverev. Zverev will be playing his first tournament since losing in the Australian Open final to Jannik Sinner.
“We do not yet know whether participation in Buenos Aires next week is in danger,” Aneke commented.
Rune, who will turn 22 in April, has been ranked as high as fourth in the PIF ATP rankings. So far in his career he has won four ATP titles (including the 2022 Paris Masters) and is a three-time Grand Slam quarter-finalist. He is one of three players in the top 20 aged 21 or under along with Arthur Fils or Carlos Alcaraz.
