Casper Ruud says he feels no extra pressure to perform well at the Barcelona Open despite being on the verge of leaving the top 10 next week.
The Norwegian is defending 500 points at the tournament he won 12 months ago by defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. Since then, Ruud has won only one other title, which was also on the clay in Geneva last May. However, more recently, he was runner-up at the Dallas Open earlier this year.
Currently ranked 10th in the world, Ruud has been continuously inside the top 10 since March 4th, 2024. He has been as high as second in the world which is the best position ever achieved by a player from Norway in the Open Era.
“What I’ve learned in my years on Tour, and especially the last three or four years, is that results will kind of come and go a bit,” Ruud told reporters in Barcelona on Sunday.
“No matter how good you are, what ranking you are, you will always play players who will play great.
“Maybe you will have some surprising losses and the ranking will adjust after that.”
Fortunately for Ruud, this time of the season is usually when he is at his best. According to ATP data, he has won more Tour-level matches (116) and titles (11) on the clay than any other player since the start of the 2020 season. Last week at the Monte Carlo Masters, he suffered a third round loss to Alexi Popyrin.
As for his chances in Barcelona, the 26-year-old is staying grounded. He is seeded second in the draw behind Carlos Alcaraz with Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev also playing.
“I know that if I don’t win this tournament again this year, I will probably lose my top ten ranking,” he said.
“It’s okay. I will probably wake up and be just the same person as when I was in the top ten. Be happy with my life anyway.”
Should he lose early and relinquish his top 10 place next Monday, Ruud believes there are plenty of opportunities for him to regain the position before this year’s French Open.
“My goal is of course to try to do well and the next few weeks will be very important. For example, in Madrid and Rome I have almost no points to defend,” Ruud explained.
“You cannot really control when you will have a great week or not and I’m just going to try to play good tennis and let the result come.
“I don’t really feel pressure at all. I’m just going to do my best and if I don’t do well, if I lose, I lose. Life goes on.”
Ruud will play Colombian qualifier Daniel Elahi Galán in his opening match.
