No. 2 seed Casper Ruud was on the verge of suffering a shock loss in his Munich opener but he recovered from a poor start to the match to beat Alex Molcan 3-6 6-4 6-4.Â
Ruud, who is enjoying a career-high ranking of No. 7 in the world, made a slow start to the match as Molcan started with back-to-back breaks and a 4-0 lead.
Ruud got one break back in the eighth game to reduce the deficit to 5-3 but then got broken for the third time in the following game as Molcan won the opener.Â
After losing the first set, Ruud broke Molcan in the opening game of the second set and held on to his serve the rest of the set to force a decider.
In the third set, Ruud claimed the lone break of the set in the ninth game before serving out for the match in the ninth game.
Ruud: Molcan was a very tough test
“It was a very tough test. I didn’t get off to a great start,” Ruud said, per the ATP website. “But I was able to fight back and find my rhythm and luckily I was able to do it a little bit towards the end of the first set, which I still lost, but it gave me some confidence for the second set.
“I started the second set well, I broke him right away. The third set was really close and even but I was able to get the break. It gives me confidence I am able to win matches like these.”
Ruud plays Botic van de Zandschulp for a place in the Munich semifinal.
“It will be another tough challenge,” Ruud said. “I lost to him at the US Open last year. That was the tournament he made a name for himself and started playing really well. I need to be prepared for a tough match.”
Ruud is playing in Munich for the fourth time.Â
Last year, Ruud reached the Munich semifinal before losing to Nikoloz Basilashvili.
It remains to be seen how far can Ruud go in Munich this year.