Norwegian tennis star Casper Ruud, a two-time runner-up at Roland Garros, was knocked out of the tournament in the second round on Wednesday. Ruud lost in straight sets to Portugal’s Nuno Borges, who delivered a composed and determined performance to win 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-0.
The loss marks a significant early departure for Ruud, currently ranked No. 7 in the world, who had reached the final in Paris in 2022 and 2023, and the semifinals in 2024. Known for his consistent and patient clay-court game, Ruud struggled to find rhythm against Borges, whose aggressive baseline play and tactical discipline proved decisive.
Borges, ranked 53rd in the ATP standings, kept his unforced errors low and maintained pressure on Ruud throughout the match. After narrowly taking the first set in a tiebreak, the Portuguese player broke early in the second set and never looked back. His ability to neutralize Ruud’s forehand and dictate play with clean groundstrokes earned him his first-ever berth in the third round of a Grand Slam.
Ruud, by contrast, appeared out of sync for much of the match. Despite earning several break points, he struggled to convert and often found himself on the defensive. His forehand, usually a reliable weapon, was inconsistent, and he failed to impose his usual dominance from the baseline.
The result is one of the most unexpected of the tournament so far and reshapes the dynamics of the men’s singles draw. With Ruud out, the lower half of the bracket now offers new opportunities for less established players to advance. Borges is set to face the winner of the match between Argentina’s Tomás MartÃn Etcheverry and Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in the third round.
Borges’s performance also marks a significant moment for Portuguese tennis. While João Sousa previously reached the fourth round of Grand Slams, Borges’s win over a top-10 player at Roland Garros is one of the most notable achievements by a Portuguese male player on the Grand Slam stage.
As Roland Garros 2025 continues, the tournament has already seen a number of surprises, and Borges’s win adds further intrigue to an increasingly open men’s field. For Ruud, the focus now shifts to regrouping ahead of the grass-court season, while Borges prepares for the biggest challenge of his career so far.