Ruud seals victory on return to action after Wimbledon, reaches Bastad Open quarter-finals

Norway’s tennis star Casper Ruud has made a winning return to on-court action in the Swedish Open.

The 24-year-old defeated Alexander Shevchenko in straight sets in the round of 16 with a score of 6-2, 6-4 on Thursday.

Following the match, Ruud stated that it was good to win the match, considering how ‘tough’ it was last year.

“I am very happy to win. It was tough here for me last year, losing in my first match, so to get a win is good, in front of a Scandinavian crowd,” he siad.

“It was very difficult with the wind today, conditions were a bit challenging but I was able to do good enough.”

The victory will definitely going to give Ruud the much-needed boost for matches ahead after a rather average outing in Wimbledon 2023.

He was knocked out in a surprising result during the second round of the third Grand Slam of the year by Britain’s Liam Broady in a five-set thriller with a score of 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0.