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Holger Rune's defense of Stefanos Tsitsipas amid his ATP Finals withdrawal attracted a lot of reactions from fans.
Rune and Tsitsipas locked horns in the round-robin stage of the year-end championships in Turin. The Dane led 2-1 when the Greek retired from the match due to a back injury, thus withdrawing from the ATP Finals, with Hubert Hurkacz replacing him.
There were few who were not pleased with Tsitsipas retiring, with one fan claiming that he should have withdrawn from the tournament and stayed on just for the prize money.
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Rune defended the 25-year-old by stating that others shouldn't comment on him since they didn't know what was going on with him.
"We are not in Stefanos' body. So we cannot comment on what he should have done. We are here to fight and win. No one here in the top 8 is a quitter and we will try to the end. If we only thought rationally, we wouldn't be where we are today," the Dane wrote on X.
Several fans supported Tsitsipas after Rune's statement, with one citing the example of Rafael Nadal's withdrawal from last year's Wimbledon after winning his quarterfinal. The fan claimed that people didn't understand players wanting to fight till the end.
"This is the same s**t people started saying after Nadal withdrawal from Wimbledon, Players will always try their best and continue until they can’t, some people seem not to understand that and think it’s unfair for the players who couldn’t even make it," a fan wrote on Reddit.
Another fan cited the example of Roger Federer withdrawing from the final of the 2014 ATP Finals due to a back injury, claiming that Rune was right in what he said.
"A few years ago Roger Federer withdraw from the final against Novak before it even started because of a back injury. I'm not sure how people reacted to that Although I dislike Tsit, Rune is right here. Tsit tried and failed. Nothing wrong with that," the fan wrote.
Another fan hailed Rune for standing up for Tsitsipas.
"You don't see that often one player stands for another. Let alone for Stef. He's just second player who publicly defends Stef. Thank you Holger. Small things make huge difference," the fan tweeted.
Holger Rune will take on Jannik Sinner in the ATP Finals
Holger Rune's final round-robin fixture at the ATP Finals will be against Jannik Sinner. The Italian is already close to reaching the semifinals of the tournament in Turin after defeating Novak Djokovic 7-5, 6-7(5), 7-6(2).
Sinner and Rune will lock horns for the third time, with the Dane winning both of their prior meetings. The most recent encounter between the two came in the semifinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters, with Rune winning 1-6, 7-5, 7-5.
Victory for Sinner will see him win the Green Group and confirm his place in the semifinals of the ATP Finals for the first time in his career. If Holger Rune wins, he will seal his spot in the knockout stages if Djokovic loses to Hurkacz.
