Hobbits fan Ruud to play Classic
World No 2 Casper Ruud has been confirmed for January’s ASB Classic.
Fresh from making it to the final of the US Open, where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz, the Norwegian has been announced as the player who’ll be the top seed for next year’s men’s event in Auckland.
‘‘This is a fantastic coup for the event, for ASB and for tennis fans,’’ ASB Classic tournament director, Nicolas Lamperin said.
Ruud has enjoyed an incredible 2022, making the final of the French Open, as well as the US Open, while he has also won tournaments in Gstaad, Geneva and Buenos Aires.
For the men’s Classic it had become harder to attract elite players because most prefer to spend the week before the Australian Open preparing in Melbourne. However, Ruud has decided he wants to play a tournament in week two of the 2023 calendar and has chosen Auckland as his destination. ‘‘New Zealand is a very beautiful country. I’ve been a couple of times before,’’ Ruud said.
‘‘The conditions are very similar to Melbourne so it is a nice tournament to play and I look forward to it.
‘‘I am a big fan of the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings movies that were recorded there. I know the nature and the scenery are incredible so that would be nice to explore.’’
In 2014, Spaniard David Ferrer came to Auckland ranked No 3 in the world and twice before that visited as the world No 5, but this will be the first time in the modern history of the tournament that a men’s player ranked as high as Ruud will play at Stanley Street.
World No 8 Cameron Norrie has already been confirmed, making this the first time in recent years the event will boast two players inside the top 10.
The Classic runs from January 2-14, with the women’s tournament taking place over the first week, followed by the men’s.