Francisco Cerundolo upsets defending champion Ruud in Bastad

Francisco Cerundolo continued playing well shocking Casper Ruud 6-4 3-6 7-5 ensuring that Bastad will have a new champion.

Yes, Casper Ruud was the defending champion in Swedes as he won the event last year but this year he stumbled in his first match. It was a very hard battle between the players but it was not the best that Ruud can offer. Cerundolo did a lot of damage with his forehand and it's his signature shot so it was natural. Ruud did the same but ultimately he did not have enough.

Both players dominated quite well on their opening serve but Cerundolo was a bit sharper. He actually did not allow a single break point in the opening set while converting one of the two he had. The 2nd set was much better by Ruud as he had more chances simply because his opponent did not serve that well. He actually served rather poor while Ruud dominated on his serve.

It was enough for the 6-3 2nd set win. The final set was a proper battle between the players and it was the highest level each of them showed during the entire match. Ruud had an early chance but after squandering it he fell behind 2-4. Eventually, he battled back to 4-4 but towards the end, it was Cerundolo who found more chances and actually converted one late for the 7-5 final set triumph.