Casper Ruud beats Rafa Jódar 6-3, 6-4 and reaches the Paris Masters round of 16

Result in Paris

Casper Ruud beat Rafa Jódar 6-3, 6-4 on Tuesday, 3 November, in the second round of the Paris Masters, an indoor hard-court event. The Norwegian, a former world number two who trained at Rafael Nadal's academy, advanced to the round of 16. Jódar, the ninth seed and 20 years old, had entered the world top 10 after reaching the Shanghai Masters final about two weeks before this match. Ruud took revenge for a loss to the Spaniard in Shanghai weeks earlier. The win also ended a run of six straight Masters 1000 events in which Jódar had reached the round of 16.

Set by set

Ruud broke Jódar in the second game of the first set after the Spaniard had conceded two early break chances. Jódar had an immediate opportunity to strike back, reaching 15-40 on the Norwegian's serve, but Ruud held and moved ahead 3-0. Jódar saved a set point in the eighth game, yet Ruud closed the set 6-3 in 39 minutes.

The second set began well for Jódar, who broke to love for 3-1 and seemed to have the momentum. He then lost his next service game after several errors, making it 3-2. At 4-4, Ruud broke in the ninth game to lead 4-5, and he served out the match at the first attempt with three consecutive aces, the last at 212 km/h.

Accounts differ on the length of the match. Two reports put it at one hour and 18 minutes, while an AI-generated match summary gives one hour and 16 minutes.

Serve and return numbers

Jódar finished with 16 winners but won only 39% of points on his second serve. An AI-generated match summary credits Ruud with a 78% first-serve percentage and with winning 71% of his service points. The gap on serve was decisive, since Ruud's service games remained secure while Jódar's second-serve points stayed vulnerable throughout the second set.

Jódar, points won on second serve39%

Ruud, service points won (AI-generated summary)71%

Jódar, points won on second serve

39 %

Ruud, service points won (AI-generated summary)

71 %

Data from the article text

What it means for Turin

Jódar no longer controls his own path to the ATP Finals, which are played in Turin, Italy, in November and bring together the eight best players of the season. Three places in the field were still open at the time of the match. His chances now depend on the results of rivals, including Alex de Miñaur and Novak Djokovic. Djokovic beat Vacherot on the same Tuesday to move into the next round of the Paris tournament. Jódar will have to wait for those results before knowing whether his season extends to Turin.