Norwegian tennis player Casper Ruud left a message for Iga Swiatek to lift her spirits after her semi-finals loss to Coco Gauff in the Madrid Open 2025 on Thursday.
Following the loss, a video showed the Pole in an inconsolable state. The video shows the second seeded sitting on the bench on her side and crying under a towel before she returns to a normal state.
“Hey @iga_swiatek keep your head up🙏🙏 Like millions of other people I love watching you play. Not your day today, but you inspire so many and you’ll be back stronger than ever!!😊🤩👏🎾,” Ruud wrote in a message on X.
Check the video here:
The four-time French Open champion was defeated 1-6, 1-6 in the Madrid Open 2025 by Coco Gauff. She will take on Belarusian top seed Aryna Sabalenka in the final.
Incidentally, the American had never defeated Swiatek on clay before it took her only 64 minutes to dispatch her.
Gauff, the US Open 2023 champion, hit seven aces and won 19 of 21 points in a masterful performance.
“I was aggressive and played with margin. Maybe it wasn’t her best level,” Gauff said in her on-court interview.
The American, who edged past Dayana Yastremska in three sets in her opening match last week, added: “I felt great out here on the court today, much different to my first match here in the first round.
“I think the previous times we played on clay I don’t think I had a win against her yet.
“Obviously on clay she’s a different player, but clay is one of my better surfaces too, and I thought if I can beat her on hard I can beat her on clay.”
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