Around this time three years ago, Casper Ruud entered Arthur Ashe Stadium for the US Open final knowing victory would deliver him both his first Grand Slam title and the world No.1 ranking.
He played impressively but lost in four sets to Carlos Alcaraz, a teen phenom who with the win earned his first major trophy and became the youngest world No.1 in ATP rankings history.
Alcaraz has since gone on to win five majors, and, alongside current No.1 Jannik Sinner, become a dominant force at the Grand Slams.
Together they have won the past seven majors and clashed in the final of the last two, the latest installments of a brilliant rivalry which began blooming at that 2022 US Open – where Ruud ultimately reached the final.
Ruud’s career has also gone from strength to strength. The Norwegian is now a three-time major finalist and became a Masters 1000 champion this year in Madrid.
The ascent of Alcaraz and Sinner has given him a new target to chase.
PODCAST: Listen to Casper & Christian Ruud on The Sit-Down
"Now you have two guys who honestly you can say they're also taking it to a little bit of a different level,” he said on The Sit-Down podcast.
“But I really still believe that they're catchable, let's say, that it's possible to catch up with them, and they're beatable.
“Otherwise I don't think I would be here if I didn't believe that you can beat anyone.”
Ruud was joined on this week’s episode by father Christian, a former professional player who now serves as Casper’s coach.
Ruud Sr. set Open-era records for Norway when he competed, peaking at world No.39 in 1995 and posting his best Grand Slam result by reaching the fourth round at Australian Open 1997.
In delightful symmetry, Casper reached the same stage at the same event in 2021 – the first time he’d appeared in the second week of a Grand Slam.
He’d already surpassed Christian’s career-high ranking a year earlier; he rose to world No.34 in February 2020 following his first ATP title at the Argentina Open.
Big Rafa fan 🫶
This week on The Sit-Down: Christian and Casper Ruud unpack how the Big Three helped shape Casper’s climb to the top 🤝 https://t.co/Jdq8pJfQdh pic.twitter.com/1eaTiwtQaO— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) August 11, 2025
Then COVID hit, suspending professional tennis – and Casper’s ranking – for almost six months.
Since competition resumed, he has soared.
“I've just only really gone steady [in] one way, which has been great. It went faster than I maybe thought was realistic,” Ruud Jr. observed.
“From let's say August 2020 until August 2022, I went from [mid-30s] to No.2 in the world, which is quite crazy when you think about it, in the span of just two years. Because two years ago I was not like a superstar as a junior, or I didn't have like an unbelievable result.
“So for me to go from [there] in August/September 2020 and then two years later I played for world No.1 and my first Slam title against Alcaraz in the US Open was an incredible curve that went, honestly, quite fast, which was in a way a little life-changing and career-changing for me.”
Earlier in 2022, Ruud reached his first major final at Roland Garros – losing to idol Rafael Nadal – and returned to the final in Paris in 2023, falling to Novak Djokovic.
He cites those back-to-back finals, plus his Masters breakthrough in Madrid, as his proudest career moments.
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There’s one goal remaining, something he could tick off when he returns to the US Open – this year beginning 24 August.
"The ultimate goal and the final goal for my career is of course maybe to lift a trophy at a Slam one day,” Ruud revealed.
“But it's not going to be easy, because you have a lot of players who think the same way, and the level is just really high.”