Ruud Channels New Fatherhood into Delray Drive
Casper Ruud arrives in Florida as a debutant at the Delray Beach Open, his baseline game sharpened by the profound shift of becoming a dad—now every rally carries the weight of family miles away.
Casper Ruud steps onto the Delray Beach Open courts with a fire kindled far from the baseline. Weeks after welcoming his daughter with fiancée Maria, the Norwegian lugs the unshakeable pull of fatherhood into this ATP 250 hard-court swing. it’s his first time here, but the emotional current runs deeper than any prior opener, turning routine points into quiet declarations.
His Wednesday matchup against Marcos Giron revives a balanced head-to-head at 2-2, where Giron’s flat strikes and net forays will probe for early lapses. Ruud’s heavy topspin forehand, looped deep to pin opponents back, meets the medium-paced surface head-on, while his backhand slice counters aggressive returns. Fresh from a fourth-round push at the Australian Open, he carries Melbourne’s grit into Florida’s humidity, where rallies stretch longer under the sun.
“It was an incredibly emotional moment,” Ruud said. “I think for anyone who has become a parent, it’s an incredible feeling and hard to explain with words.
“I’m excited for the future. This is just the beginning of 20 to 25 years of taking care of her. It’s fun and exciting, I will try to use it as motivation and try to remember that you’ve travelled this far and being away from her, you might as well try your best and play some good tennis while you’re at it.”
Fatherhood ignites baseline resolve
The joy of new parenthood reshapes Ruud’s tournament rhythm, blending the thrill of home with the tour’s relentless pace. Back in Norway after announcing his daughter’s arrival in late January, he now faces the tug of separation, where every crosscourt exchange echoes the distance to her crib. This isn’t mere sentiment; it fuels his one–two pattern, serve slicing into the body followed by an inside-out forehand that cracks open the court.
Delray’s seaside buzz—waves crashing beyond the fences, fans murmuring under palm shade—mirrors the life’s quiet upheavals he navigates off-court. His game, rooted in consistent depth, gains an edge from this personal pivot, pushing him to extend points against foes who falter in the grind. As the former No. 2, he jokes about his arms holding steady sans baby-carrying strain, a nod to the real test of balancing jet lag with paternal duties.
“My forehand still feels pretty similar to before, and my backhand as well,” he quipped. “I haven’t got an overuse of my arm yet. I haven’t carried her too much yet!”
Hard-court miles stretch family bonds
This event launches a grueling sequence: the ATP 500 in Acapulco, then Masters 1000 draws at Indian Wells and Miami, all on unforgiving hard courts that quicken under heat. Ruud must adapt his topspin arcs to faster bounces, deploying down-the-line backhands to punish overhit returns and varying slice to slow the tempo. The field’s depth, with Taylor Fritz‘s booming serves as two-time champion and Learner Tien‘s Next Gen fire, demands precision from the second seed.
Homesickness shadows the travel, turning hotel nights into reflections on the 20 to 25 years ahead. “It will be a tough trip, because it won’t be that easy for them to come over here and I will miss them and at times feel homesick,” Ruud shared. He eyes closing this swing strong, channeling absence into sharper focus for baseline duels that could redefine his early 2026 form.
Playing beyond personal lines
Ruud’s goals crystallize around wins that honor more than rankings, with Giron‘s all-court probes setting the tone for tactical tweaks. Expect him to exploit series familiarity, anticipating backhand slices with deep inside-in forehands that force errors on the rise. As clay looms in Europe, this hard-court phase tempers his resolve, where fatherhood’s quiet power elevates every heavy ball over the net.
“That will be the goal for these couple of weeks and months coming up, [starting] here, then Acapulco, Indian Wells and Miami: To win some matches and see if I can play for more than myself,” he said. On these Florida baselines, amid the salt-kissed air and rhythmic thuds, Ruud forges a path where family fuels triumph, priming deeper runs as the season unfolds.
