Holger Rune's mum lashes out at ATP as son left in tears and forced to have surgery

Holger Rune's mother, Aneke, has slammed the ATP for punishing players who do not compete in mandatory tournaments. There were distressing scenes at the Stockholm Open on Saturday when Rune suddenly picked up an injury in the middle of his semi-final match and burst into tears.

The world No. 10 told the physio he heard something "pop" and was forced to retire mid-match, hopping off the court in pain. Rune has since confirmed that his Achilles is "fully broken on the proximal part" and he is set to undergo surgery this week.

The 22-year-old is now expected to be sidelined for at least six months while he recovers. Rune's mum has now lashed out at the ATP's relentless schedule, claiming that players were feeling pressured to compete instead of taking breaks.

Aneke told BT: "There have simply been too many mandatory tournaments. Tournaments that the players are obliged to participate in, and where they are severely penalised financially by not playing them all. The players simply do not have time to recover properly throughout the season.

"What could have been a week off with light training and recharging is now a hectic tournament week with matches every other day, while there are mandatory media events for every single tournament. There is no rest - neither physically nor mentally."

"You also have to build on it throughout the entire season. You have to include training weeks where you can work physically and optimise your game and prevent injuries.

"It's a lot for the body. For completely normal, healthy, well-trained bodies, it's almost impossible to be sharp in everything that is expected of tennis players over the course of a year."

The tennis season lasts for around 11 months of the year, and tournaments are now becoming longer. Seven of the nine Masters 1000 events have been extended from seven to 12 days. Aneke now wants the governing body for men's tennis to abolish mandatory tournament requirements - and the penalties for those who don't play enough.

"You are punished financially with some reductions that are not fair. There is an annual bonus for the players, which consists of a 50/50 profit-sharing. But in the ATP, the rules are such that if you miss one of the mandatory Masters 1000 tournaments, your total share is reduced by 25 per cent, which is deducted from the player's annual share," she continued.

"These are old-fashioned punishment methods, and they have no place in 2025. There are unreasonable penalties for a cancellation, you should instead focus on increasing the quality of the game by having fresh and rested players on the court.

"If you want to make financial reductions, do it as a percentage in relation to the amount they have played and reported cancellations. Instead of robbing them of everything."

With Rune now sidelined for the rest of the 2025 season and likely most of 2026, his mother believes he is one of several victims of the exhausting season.

"Now Holger is the latest victim in the line of injured players. With an injury that most often comes due to fatigue. It is unacceptable that you do not take the players' well-being into account to a greater extent - but just put more and more pressure on them," she added.

"Holger is facing a long period without earnings. Fortunately, he has done well over the years, and he has managed his finances well by having good savings, so he is not in need. But not all players are top-10 in the world, and many may not have the same savings. And then the drastic reductions in their bonuses mean a lot. I think this is something that ATP can adapt immediately."