"I am not the first victim to lose to Rafael Nadal" - Casper Ruud

Fourth seed Casper Ruud advanced to the fourth round of the 2023 French Open with a commendable performance on Saturday (June 3).

Despite a sluggish start against Zhang Zhizhen, who aimed to make history as the first Chinese man to reach the fourth round in Paris in the Open era, Casper Ruud showcased a remarkable comeback

Ruud triumphed with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-4, securing his spot in the second week. The Norwegian, who is the runner-up in the 2022 French Open, is determined to claim his first-ever Grand Slam title in this tournament.

Casper Ruud reflected on his previous year's Roland-Garros final loss in a post-match press conference, stating that he is "not really haunted" by it. He acknowledged that losing to Rafael Nadal in the final is not an uncommon occurrence, while also admitting that he could have performed better.

"I'm not really haunted by what happened last year in the final honestly. I mean, like I said, I think last year I'm not the first victim to lose to Rafa in the final. Of course I wish I could have done a little better and so on, but was my first one," he said.

Casper Ruud then talked about the increased attention on him and said that he is pleased with his progress in the tournament and aims to elevate his game for continued success in the coming days.

"Not really haunted by it, but yeah, I think I am -- some more eyes on me maybe this year than last year. But yeah, it's been sort of quiet so far. Been able to do my job and play my matches and get on in the tournament," he said.

"So I'm very happy and moving closer to second week. That's where, you know, you really need to step up your game and play your A game if you want to do well and continue winning," he added.

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"I still don't feel like I'm playing error-free in a way" - Casper Ruud

Casper Ruud pictured at the 2023 French Open - Day Seven.

Casper Ruud further stated that his performance has improved compared to the beginning of the year. However, he expressed a desire to enhance his game even more, particularly in terms of minimizing errors.

"Yeah, level is getting better. I think I still don't feel like I'm playing like, what should I say, error-free, in a way. I still feel like there are things I can improve and I can make less errors than I have done in some moments in my matches," he said.

Having reached the fourth round and secured a spot in the second week, the 24-year-old expressed his intention to approach the upcoming matches with a more relaxed mindset. He aims to build on his success and draw confidence from the victories he has achieved thus far.

"But I'm through to the second week and the fourth round. I'm going to try to let a little bit more loose and feel like I have won some good matches so far. So I'm going to try to build on it," Casper Ruud said.