Spurred on by boisterous French fans in the crowd, 2020 Australian Open junior runner-up Arthur Cazaux kept his cool under pressure and produced a fantastic display with ball-striking variation and persistence to outsmart eighth seed Holger Rune in four sets during their second-round contest – reiterating how another breakthrough youngster has risen into prominence over recent months.
Cazaux cool, composed and classy beyond Rune
- French wildcard Cazaux beat world no. 8 Rune 7-6 (7-4), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 for career-best win to reach Australian Open third-round on debut
- 21-year-old in his post-match interview: “A crazy match and big fight. Holger is a wonderful player, I’ve known him a long time, I was ready for a big fight – so happy and the atmosphere was crazy, thanks to everyone and the French people who came to see me… they pushed me every point from the first day against Djere. Merci beaucoup, hope you enjoyed the show.”
- Montpellier-born youngster won New Caledonia event to kick off 2024 and earn wildcard, beating a series of compatriots along the way – including Harold Mayot, who pipped him to the 2020 Australian Open junior title
Holger Rune came into this tournament with a few niggles, as has been the case for many in preparation for the year’s first Major after another short offseason.
Tape on his left knee and a damaged right ankle meant movement would’ve been limited against a determined opponent who had nothing to lose – and plenty to gain – as a plucky underdog feeding off the crowd’s boisterous energy.
Yet even a fully-fit Rune would’ve had trouble tracking down the bulk of rally balls being fired back his direction by a fierce competitor who he knows more intimately than most, dating back to their days together on the junior circuit. Some of the highlight reel shots didn’t even make the tournament’s extended eight-minute cut:
Cazaux returned well, covered the court expertly during their longer rallies and served even better – 18 aces over four sets works out to a game of free points in every frame just from that weapon, whereas Rune was far more inconsistent.
The courtside interviewer called it Pete Sampras-like when discussing the Frenchman’s serve and his response was refreshingly bullish given a versatile sporting background where he played a variety of different disciplines in his younger years before sticking with tennis as the main focus. You should be thankful he did.
“It has always been a big point in my game, I played handball when I was younger for seven years, I have this shoulder for these balls … but I work hard at every point of my game, yes I’ve got a good serve but think I can improve a lot.”
Don’t rush them too quickly
American talent Alex Michelsen (19y, 5m) isn’t just enjoying a maiden Major main draw run outside his home nation ala Ben Shelton last season, he’s currently the youngest player in the world’s top 100 – but won’t be for much longer.
China’s Juncheng Shang closes in on that distinction, while an even younger prospect in Croatian teen Dino Prizmic could overtake both if his four-hour first-round battle with Novak Djokovic last week taught us anything.
It feels like there’s an endless conveyor belt of prodigious phenoms everyone is quick to crown as the next best thing, but in the case of France’s 21-year-old Arthur Cazaux, his breakthrough has been steady and a refreshing rise befitting the man’s character.
Who is Arthur Cazaux?
This time last year, he won a Thailand challenger event and finished runner-up in another the following week, both having passed through the inevitable grind of qualifying. His name may ring a bell to some UK fans after his run to the Nottingham final in mid-June, before losing in straight-sets (6-4, 6-4) against Andy Murray.
He finished 2023 with a 54-29 singles record across 12 countries, experiencing a range of different styles and ability level with Andrey Rublev and Pablo Carreno Busta among notable names he would’ve learned a lot of tennis nuance from.
Having composure in high-pressure situations is easier said than done once the onus is on you to perform and the dynamics will soon change once he’s no longer an unknown quantity, as the scale of his regular weekly tournaments change and he has ranking points to defend – or earn – like Rune did on this occasion.
The Dane had his chances but ultimately lost in a deciding set tiebreak against Rublev at the last-16 stage last season, learning plenty from that defeat. Here, he was outfoxed by a better player on the day – no shame in that – and it’s exactly the sort of win Cazaux and his coaches will use as fuel for the rest of the season.
While the likes of Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga became fan favourites because of their exciting playstyles, France haven’t always been blessed with the most consistent performers on tour. Adrian Mannarino is enjoying an Indian summer at 35, though the 1990-97 cohort of players can’t really say the same.
Arthur Fils and Luca Van Assche (both 19), Cazaux and Mayot (21) and others besides are providing the blueprint that a proud nation like France want to champion.
Due to the time difference and scheduling conflicts, I won’t be producing daily AO round-ups like recent seasons. Instead, the tennis content will be centred around specific matchups or the story of the day, diving into storylines and more, especially with so much ground to explore and not enough time to do everything justice. Nonetheless, stay tuned to moandsports.com for coverage.
Picture source: Getty Images, quotes via Eurosport broadcast
Mo and Sports 