"Holger Rune is flanked by a hyperattentive mother... he'll be fine" - Tennis journalist dismisses concerns about coaching changes in Dane's camp

Tennis journalist Jon Wertheim recently gave his two cents on Holger Rune's current coaching situation.

Rune has endured a difficult time on the ATP tour since last year's claycourt swing. The Dane has struggled to make a dent at the big tournaments. Consequently, he has swapped coaches in search of better results, experiencing short tenures with Boris Becker, Severin Luthi, Patrick Mouratoglou, and Lars Christensen in the last few months.

Against that background, a fan wrote to Jon Wertheim's mailbag for Sports Illustrated that they were worried about Holger Rune's future prospects. In response, the American asserted that while the World No. 7 changing multiple coaches wasn't ideal, his environment — which is dominated by his mother Aneke — may have contributed to his recent slump.

He also suggested that the Dane's camp could hire an "organizational psychologist" for a smoother delegation of responsibilities.

"No player enters the year intending to make wholesale changes a few weeks in..." Wertheim wrote in SI's Mailbag. "This camp could use an organizational psychologist to sort out roles, logistics and workplace dynamics... I see a talented player making his way. This is not a critique, but he is flanked by a hyperattentive mother who is not exactly the Danish equivalent of a shrinking violet."

Wertheim added that Rune will 'mature and age' eventually. The journalist also hoped that the 20-year-old's management company, IMG, would streamline his team soon.

"He'll age and mature. He'll make more changes," Wertheim added. "IMG, newly hired, will play management consultant and professionalize the operation. He'll be fine."

Holger Rune exits Rotterdam Open in second round as rough patch on ATP Tour continues

Holger Rune hits a forehand at the 2024 Australian Open

Meanwhile, Holger Rune suffered an uncharacteristic defeat in his second-round match at the 2024 ABN AMRO Open against Alexander Shevchenko on Thursday (February 15). The third seed lost the match 4-6, 6-1, 3-6 despite winning 85% of his first-serve points and hitting 29 winners for only seven unforced errors.

With his latest loss, Rune has dropped four of his last nine matches on the ATP tour. The Dane had enjoyed a good start to his 2024 season, finishing runner-up to Grigor Dimitrov at the Brisbane International.

However, the 20-year-old failed to back that run up at the Australian Open a few weeks later, being upset in the second round to unseeded Arthur Cazaux in four sets. It has been mayhem for him since then; he had to retire during his Montpellier semifinal match against Borna Coric due to an arm injury, and he also let go of both Becker and Luthi from his team in the last fortnight.