A physically strained Holger Rune crashed out of Japan Open in the quarter-final when he lost to the American Jenson Brooksby 3-6, 3-6 after making a string of unforced errors which proved costly in the end.
Holger Rune bowed out of the Japan Open when he lost in the quarter-finals of the ATP 500 tournament in Tokyo.
Early on Sunday, he lost to the American Jenson Brooksby, No. 86 in the world rankings, 3-6, 3-6.
It was otherwise a match that Rune had every chance of winning, but he allowed himself to be beaten by adversity in both sets.
Rune was otherwise seeded third in the tournament and had the prospect of a semi-final against the American Taylor Fritz, but now it will be Brooksby who will meet his compatriot instead.
Rune otherwise seemed in great spirits from the start. He played his way to several early break points, but Brooksby was at his best when he was serving and volleying.
Instead, it was the American who gained the upper hand in the match by breaking Rune to 4-3 after the Dane made a string of costly mistakes.
Rune gave away a break point by smashing the ball into the net and followed up with a double fault.
The break knocked Rune off his stride, and Brooksby easily secured the next two games and the set 6-3.
However, Rune came out well in the second set, where he finally got a break to take a 2-1 lead. He just wasn't able to hold on.
Brooksby turned 1-3 into 5-3 in a period when Rune looked easy to frustrate. The Dane complained several times to his camp, which included Lars Christensen and his mother, Aneke Rune.
Holger Rune had the chance to break back to make it 4-5, but Brooksby saved and secured the win on his first match point.