Ruud makes history after clinching third title in Geneva

Casper Ruud scored a hat-trick Saturday at the Gonet Geneva Open, where he captured his third title at the clay ATP 250.

The Norwegian, who won Geneva in 2021 and 2022, pulled double duty to triumph in Switzerland after Friday rain postponed his semi-final match to Saturday. Ruud, seeded second, saved a match point to down Flavio Cobolli 1-6, 6-1, 7-6(4) in the last four before returning to court and ousting Tomas Machac 7-5, 6-3 in the final.

Ruud tallied three consecutive games from 4-5 in the opening set of the final after Machac committed a double fault while holding a set point on serve at 5-4. “He definitely deserved to win the first set, but that’s tennis sometimes. It’s not always fair,” Ruud said.

The World No. 7 in the PIF ATP Rankings then built upon his momentum, fearlessly striking his forehand to create a 3-0 cushion in the second set.

Despite needing a deciding set in his four previous matches in Geneva, Ruud remained in control to avoid such drama in a one-hour, 47-minute final. The 25-year-old improved to 2-0 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with the Czech.

“It was a challenging week,” said Ruud, who last month won the ATP 500 in Barcelona. “All the matches are tough, no matter who you play. Tough to find a groove, the weather has been a bit challenging all week but today was fantastic. I feel very happy to win again here in Geneva. It’s been a very good season so far.”

A 12-time tour-level titlist, Ruud leads the ATP Tour with 34 wins this season. He is the first three-time champion in Geneva tournament history. The 2022 Nitto ATP Finals runner-up is fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. Ruud is aiming for a third trip to the prestigious year-end event.

Machac, 23, was competing in his first ATP Tour final. He is up to a career-high No. 34 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings following a standout Geneva run in which he defeated World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in a three-set semi-final.