Casper Ruud makes honest Rafael Nadal admission after reaching US Open final

Casper Ruud admitted that Rafael Nadal gave him “a good beating” in the French Open final as he is happy that in his second Grand Slam final he won’t be taking on the Spaniard at Roland Garros.

Ruud, 23, reached his first Grand Slam final at this year’s French Open, before Nadal handed him a 6-3 6-3 6-0 loss.

On Friday, Ruud defeated Karen Khachanov 7-5 (5) 6-2 5-7 6-2 to reach the US Open final.

This time, Ruud plays Carlos Alcaraz for the US Open title.

“(Nadal) obviously gave me a good beating,” Ruud said. “After the final I said, ‘if I ever reach one again, I hope it is not Rafa on the other side of the court in Roland Garros’, because it’s sort of an impossible task I think for any player. I’m happy that it’s not Rafa on clay. I hope it can have prepared me a little bit. At least I know a little bit what I’m facing when I’m stepping on the court, seeing the trophy on the back of the court, seeing tons of celebrities. I hope I can be more ready for that on Sunday.”

Ruud admits he is not the most popular Norwegian athlete

Ruud is now just one win away from becoming a Grand Slam champion and the top-ranked player in the world.

But he admits Erling Haaland, who currently plays for Manchester City, is still the most popular Norwegian athlete.

“He’s had an unbelievable season so far. We all hope he keeps going. It’s a joy to watch him score goal after goal. He’s obviously the biggest star we have in Norway for the moment. He’ll probably continue to be so for many more years. I’m just focused on my career. I hope I can, of course, win more tournaments in my career. I want to represent Norway in a good way and put Norwegian tennis a little bit more on the map than it’s been the last years,” Ruud said.