Denmark’s Holger Rune took centre stage in a nailbiting contest, when he faced Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry in an exciting quarterfinal. It was the players’ second meeting on the ATP Tour, with Rune having won their first encounter in Basel two years ago. Etcheverry broke Rune’s serve early in the first set, but the Dane fought back by breaking the Argentine’s serve to level the score at 3–3. Both players then held serve until 6–6, taking the set to a tiebreak. The start of the tiebreak was even, but at 4–4 Etcheverry won three straight points to claim the first set, winning the tiebreak 7–4.
Eager to come back in the match, the Danish top seed started the second set strongly, breaking Etcheverry’s serve to take a 2–1 lead. The Argentinian immediately responded by breaking Rune’s serve to love, making it 2–2. The momentum shifted again when Rune broke Etcheverry’s serve once more to take the lead 3–2. Rune succeeded in keeping the pressure on his opponent to win the second set 6–3.
In the deciding set, Rune took control early on, racing to a 3–0 lead. Etcheverry, however, refused to give up and won three straight games to level at 3–3. At that point, Rune received treatment on court and had his left thigh bandaged. The players continued their battle until 5–4, when Rune was able to close out the match on the Argentinian’s serve, winning 6–7, 6–3, 6–4. Happy with his win, the top-seed shared "Today it was about doing whatever it takes to win, and surviving".
In the first match of the day, Ugo Humbert was rattled by the Italian Lorenzo Sonego in the first set. He had to defend three break points at 2–2, but the Frenchman clawed his way back into the match. Both players went toe-to-toe until the tiebreak, where Sonego took his chances and secured it with three set points. He converted them on his first attempt to take the lead, getting a step closer to the semifinals and becoming the first Italian since Fabio Fognini in 2018 to reach the final four at the BNP Paribas Nordic Open.
After a tough-fought first set, Ugo Humbert stormed through the second, taking a 4–0 lead. Sonego was unable to win a single game, scoring only six points on his service games and losing the second set 6-0. The two players went on to a third deciding set, with Sonego to serve. Humbert broke the Italian at 3–3, taking the lead 4–3 in the final set. After 2 hours and 43 minutes of a high-level contest, Ugo Humbert claimed victory over Lorenzo Sonego 6–7(3), 6–0, 6–3.
On court after the match, the Frenchman had nothing but kind words about his opponent: “Lorenzo is an amazing player, he’s maybe the player I played the most in my career so we know each other pretty well.” When asked what had edged him through on centre court today, Humbert credited himself for handling the pressure: “It was not easy, but I played really well in the key moments and that’s what made the difference, I think.” Humbert, who is now through to his first semifinal in Stockholm, shared with the press that he has truly enjoyed a perfect record in his first appearance in Stockholm: “I really love indoor, I mean, for me, it's the best moment of the year,” he added with a smile.
The Frenchman goes up against top seed Holger Rune in tomorrow’s semifinal. It will be the pair’s sixth meeting on tour, with Rune taking their most recent clash earlier this year. This matchup promises to be an exciting contest at the Royal Tennis Hall in Stockholm.
