Welcome to the latest instalment of Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune’s blog. The 18-year-old won a Junior Grand Slam title at Roland Garros in 2019 and is making big strides within the professional game. Holger is writing regular pieces for the ITF and providing insight into his tennis journey. Follow his progress here.

It will soon be time to say goodbye to 2021 and I cannot complain about my efforts or achievements this year. I am really happy, but I am also very hungry to improve and continue competing against the world’s best players.

Experience comes from being in the field. I am a big believer in this and I was convinced this is what was required this season in order to develop physically, tactically and mentally.

I knew that 2021 would mean me getting out there and playing a lot of tournaments because coming from a small country like Denmark with no big tennis history there are not many to lean on for advice.  

I love travelling and competing, so in that sense it has been really enjoyable. I have been to 15 countries to play ITF events, ATP Challengers, ATP 250s, 500s and Masters 1000s as well as a Grand Slam.

I have certainly learned a lot and improved in many areas. Looking back though, I think I could have done even better, and this is top of my agenda in pre-season as I work towards 2022.

It has been a long time since I have had a block of 5-6 weeks for practice. On the one hand, I really miss competing but on the other I know that to develop I need time away from competition.

I am building up my body with my physical coach, Lapo, at the Mouratoglou Academy, so I am ready for the potential of five-set matches at the Australian Open. I am also improving on court so I feel the confidence in everything I do.

I had a good experience at the Pau Challenger in late November where my focus was not to win but to practice specific things within my game. However, we play tournaments to top podiums so time off to work and improve is important.

Seeing the wood for the trees

While I navigated qualifying to reach the first round of this year’s US Open, where I faced world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, January’s Australian Open will be my first Grand Slam where I enter the main draw directly.

This is a great way to start my season. I played the Australian Open Junior Championships in 2019 but it has been a while since I have competed in Melbourne, and I am very much looking forward to it.

Readers of my blog and people who know me will be aware that I always set myself tough goals. This year, I wanted win some ATP Challengers, enter the top 100 and qualify for the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan.

In total, I have contested eight finals this year, winning five. Four of those were ATP Challengers. I also reached the quarter-finals of two ATP tournaments, had an amazing experience at the US Open and sealed a spot at the Next Gen Finals, while I am currently ranked No. 103 in the world. It has been a good year.

Incidentally, I started 2021 ranked No. 474 and it is certainly the case that the lower you are ranked, the easier it is to climb. When you are around No. 200, not only do you have to win matches but whole tournaments to move up.

The funny thing about rankings, however, is that every time you climb, you find the players around you are beatable. When I was ranked No. 500, I looked at entry lists and was like, ‘oh no, this is tough’.

Then, after a few months of progressing, I no longer felt like that. Mentally, your ranking means something but also the experience you get from going step by step means you feel dressed for the occasion!

Putting smiles on faces

Even though I have had a busy schedule this year, I have been very good at taking three or four days off at a time to relax and enjoy time with my family. It’s important for body and mind to step back at times between tournaments.

It is also good to see yourself from outside and feel your hunger. There is a saying, ‘you cannot see the wood for the trees’, and I like it because it reminds you to see the bigger picture and not get blinded by things you have achieved.

As humans, we can never be perfect, the world can never be perfect and our tennis can never be as perfect as we would like. But we can still appreciate the good things in life whenever we get the chance and put a positive focus on everything we do each day.

To this end, I moved to my own place this year and had so many rackets in my basement. In the past, I have often given my used rackets to friends or to my club here in Denmark.

Because there were so many, I decided to do something different. Ever since I won an ITF junior tournament in Kenya in 2017, I have understood the importance of providing equipment to places around the world.

Through TennisAid, I shipped around 20-25 rackets to Spain, from where they will go to clubs in Africa. My biggest hope by doing this is that children will be able to have fun playing tennis. It’s a great sport but equipment is expensive, so hopefully this can help.

I receive a lot of e-mails from all over the world, from tennis clubs and organsiations in need of equipment. I try to help as much as possible, and I send all my Nike clothing. Again, hopefully this helps put smiles on faces and it is something I will continue doing.

As for 2021, that’s about me done. As I look forward to 2022, I would like to wish all readers a very happy and healthy end to the year. Happy holidays everyone and all the best for the coming weeks. Best wishes and we will catch up soon, Holger.