Rune begins title defence despite Munich hail

Holger Rune kickstarted his quest for a third consecutive BMW Open title on Thursday when he raced past Daniel Elahi Galan 6-4, 6-2.

Despite rain and hail suspending play after just two points, the second seed and Galan returned to court after a 50-minute delay. The wet, cold conditions in Munich, where temperatures were around five degrees celsius, did not stop Rune from a standout serving performance. The 20-year-old dropped just two points behind his first delivery (26/28), according to Infosys ATP Stats.

“It was very cold, I think we all felt it. But I’m from Denmark so I’m used to it,” said Rune, who wore a compression long sleeve shirt under his kit. “It was great to finish in two sets for sure and it’s nice to be back in Munich. I’m enjoying it.”

Rune, No. 12 in the PIF ATP Rankings, is 10-0 at the ATP 250 in Munich, where he lifted the trophy the past two seasons. Now 16-8 on the season, the Dane will meet qualifier Marc-Andrea Huesler in the quarter-finals. The Swiss lefty beat home hope Yannick Hanfmann 6-2, 6-4.

Last year’s semi-finalist Taylor Fritz also earned a dominant win Thursday, downing Spanish qualifier Alejandro Moro Canas 6-3, 6-1 after one hour, 13 minutes. The third seed will clash against sixth seed Jack Draper in the quarter-finals. Draper, 22, leads 1-0 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Fritz, having defeated the American in 2022 at The Queen’s Club.

Chilean Cristian Garin, who won the Munich title in 2019, rallied past American Alex Michelsen 6-7(7), 6-2, 6-1. The 27-year-old will face top seed Alexander Zverev in the last eight.