Becker confirmed on Tuesday that he was stepping down as Rune’s head coach “with immediate effect” after less than four months together. The pair formed a successful partnership in October which saw the 20-year-old go on to qualify for the ATP Finals.
Rune himself has now issued a statement on Becker’s departure, which came just days after Luthi also decided to leave the team because of a lack of availability – the same issue Becker had. “As you know, I have tried different coaching variations during the last 12 months,” the Dane said in a press release issued by his new management agency IMG.
“After working with the same coach for 15 years, my entire tennis life, it is not easy to find the perfect match on the first try. I have learned a lot and found out what is important for me to feel good and at the same time develop as I want. I have big ambitions and big goals, and I need people around me who have the same vision. And people I can trust to achieve my goals.”
Making reference to Becker and Luthi’s scheduling issues – which prevented them from travelling with Rune regularly – he added: “I need people who know me – who can be there all the time. It gives me security and joy in a world with changing environments and conditions every week.
“I would like to thank everyone involved in the process, Lars [Christensen, long-term coach], Boris, Severin, I love you. I will be happy to inform more about my final coaching setup very soon.”
When Luthi departed Rune’s camp last week, it emerged that Kenneth Carlsen stepped up to take on the responsibility of being one of the world No. 7’s travelling coaches. Rune already had history with Calsen and the Danish coach joined him at the Brisbane International, where he reached the final. It is understood that Carlsen is still working with the four-time title winner.
Announcing the news of his departure on Tuesday, Becker said: “I would like to inform you that I will step down as the head coach of Holger Rune with immediate effect. We started this partnership with the initial goal to reach the ATP Finals end of last year but moving forward I realised that in order for this to be successful, I would need to be available for Holger much more than I can.
“Due to professional and private responsibilities, I can’t give Holger what he needs now. I wish him only the very best and I’m always going to be his n.1 fan. I truly appreciated this journey together.” Luthi also face similar problems with committing to the amount of time that the world No. 7 needed.
Last week, Rune’s mum and then-manager Aneke told Ekstra Bladet: “Don’t want to make a big deal out of it, but the timing with Severin was clearly not right. It would be too few weeks for Severin to be able to cover for the continuity that Holger needs.” The former coach of Roger Federer, Luthi later confirmed Aneke’s claims that he couldn’t commit to a fuller schedule with Rune. The pair linked up in mid-December, with their partnership lasting less than two months.
