World number 4 Casper Ruud defeated Austria’s Sebastian Ofner in straight sets 6-3 6-4. The tournament’s first seed secured a place in Nordea Open semi-finals where he will face Lorenzo Musetti on Saturday.
After a short rain spell, World No. 4 returned to center court after his convincing win over Alexander Shevchenko in the second round. The recent Roland Garros finalist was set to battle against Austria’s world No. 58 Sebastian Ofner for a first tour-level meeting.
On what appears to be one of his most prolific surfaces, Casper Ruud set off to a convincing start. Both players held their serve until 3-2 when the Oslo native captured three break points. Ofner managed to save the first attempt with a beautifully crafted backhand drop shot. It then took several tries for the Norwegian to break his opponent. He succeeded on his fourth attempt to the greatest joy of Norwegian supporters in the crowd.
After holding fast, Ofner forced Ruud to serve for the set. Nonetheless, the Roland Garros finalist did not falter when the time came to seal the deal, pushing Ofner to commit an unforced error on his backhand to secure the first set 6-3. Whilst Ofner was unable to convert his break point (0 out of 4), Ruud made the most of his break-point opportunities to secure a decisive lead.
With the momentum on his side, the Norwegian found his cruising speed, leaving Ofner struggling to keep up with Ruud’s intensity. The Austrian conceded an early break which was more than enough for Ruud to cruise through. The top seed in the Båstad draw secured a solid win to book his ticket for the Nordea Open semifinal on the final score of 6-3, 6-4.
Earlier in the day, Lorenzo Musetti defeated another Austrian in the draw, qualifier Filip Misolic. In what promises to be a thrilling semi-final line-up on Saturday, Lorenzo Musetti and Casper Ruud will fight for a spot in the Nordea Open final.
Alice Froment
Nordea Open Press Team