Ruud seeking late rally to earn return to Turin

With one Roland Garros final and a single ATP title in Estoril this season, Casper Ruud is searching for late form this week at the Paris Masters to secure a place at the ATP Finals.

The Norwegian who entered the eight-man year-ender a year ago standing second in the world, now finds himself provisional 11th in the points race to Italy.

and needing a stellar showing this week in order to close the gap.

But Ruud is ready for that challenge: “In a way, it was good to get a couple of slaps (losses) to realize that not everything is going to be right all the time.

“You have to work hard for that and of course I gave my best.”

He added: “”It’s irritating, frustrating, annoying when you’re on the court and you’re not achieving the success you want.

“But let’s see what happens in Paris. It’s not the end of the world.

“It’s an opportunity they give you to look back, reflect and try to learn from it, grow from it, become a better player and know what went wrong.”