Holger Rune finally got something to cheer about in a faltering season when he booked his ticket for the second round of the ATP 500 tournament Japan Open though a 7-6, 6-1 win against the Serbian Hamad Medjedovic in Tokyo.
The victory was revenge for their Davis Cup meeting earlier in the year, when Rune collapsed completely after winning the first set.
In Tokyo, Rune kept a cool head despite a rain interruption and a bad atmosphere between the two players after a very even first set.
Medjedovic is known as a strong server, which Rune paid the price for in the aforementioned Davis Cup match, and in Tokyo, the Dane also had great difficulties returning the Serbian serve.
When Rune himself got off to a bad start and delivered an uneven first service game, Medjedovic was able to break immediately and take a 3-0 lead.
But Rune soon recovered, and once he settled into his solid baseline play, the Dane's level was a notch higher as he levelled the match at 3-3.
Soon after, the Serbian took a medical break as he complained about chest pains, but he continued to play without looking affected. Soon, there was another interruption when the rain set in, but it was short.
With no more breaks on serve, a dramatic tiebreaker decided the first set. Rune fought back from 1-4 and survived a set point when Medjedovic attempted an unsuccessful drop shot, which Rune punished immediately.
Instead, the Dane took advantage of his second set point to win 9-7, and the Serbian was furious, accusing Rune of poor sportsmanship.
The Serbian frustrations carried into the second set. Medjedovic played with greater risk, and Rune often just had to make sure to keep the ball in play to win points.
The Dane broke to make it 2-0 and again to 4-0 following a series of unprovoked errors from Medjedovic.
Soon after, Rune served home the win on his first match point.
In the second round on Saturday, Rune will meet American qualifier Ethan Quinn.