Paris Flashback: Holger Rune, Jack Sock, Tomas Berdych among surprise champions | ATP Tour

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Surprised by the Seine!: Rune, Sock, Berdych among legendary Parisian champions

Nalbandian, Khachanov again among a string of unexpected titles at the ATP Masters 1000

October 28, 2024

At the 2005 Rolex Paris Masters, an unseeded Tomas Berdych became the lowest-ranked champion in tournament history by beating Ivan Ljubicic in a five-set final. Czech, No. 50 in the PIF ATP Rankings at the time, started a 21st-century trend of surprise champions at the ATP Masters 1000 in the French capital, with a run of unsung stars such as David Nalbandian, Karen Khachanov and Holger Rune – as well as 16th seed Jack Sock – following victories of Berdych.

Since 2005, only one man has won more titles at the prestigious Paris event: Novak Djokovic, who won the first of seven in 2009. Roger Federer (2011) and Andy Murray (2016) have also hosted the tournament that has won the stars. and rising stars as equal champions. With the Serbian player out this year and Federer and Murray retired, the field could be ripe for another dark horse to finish first.

Ahead of the latest edition of the Paris tournament, ATPTour.com takes a look back at a list of unlikely contenders that could inspire an unlikely new champion in 2024.

Tomas Bedych, 2005
The 20-year-old Berdych won his one and only ATP Masters 1000 title with a five-set victory over Ljubicic in the 2005 final on indoor carpet. The Czech beat five straight players en route to the title, including Guillermo Coria, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Gaston Gaudio and fellow countryman Radek Stepanek, before his 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4 victory defeating. Ljubicic.

Berdych had previously beaten Federer at the 2004 Olympics, but he too was shocked by his success in Paris, where he remains the lowest-ranked champion in the tournament's history.

“If someone had told me that I would win this tournament, I would have called them crazy,” Berdych said at the time.

The Paris title was Berdych's second of 13 tour-level titles. He has reached 19 other finals, including three at the ATP Masters 1000 level and one at Wimbledon in 2020. The former World No.

Tomas Berdych and Ivan Ljubicic were joined by 2004 Paris champion Marat Safin during the 2005 medal ceremony. Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images.

David Nalbandian, 2007
As the Rolex Paris Masters returned to indoor hard courts in 2007, Nalbandian ushered in a new era with a shock title that saw him knock out both Federer and Rafael Nadal. The Argentine knocked out top seed Federer 6-4, 7-6(3) in the third round and later stunned Nadal 6-4, 6-0 in the final, beating Carlos Moya, David Ferrer and Richard Gasquet along the way.

The title was part of last season's surge for Nalbandian, who won the ATP Masters Cup (now the Nitto ATP Finals) in 2005 but fell outside the Top 20 during the 2007 campaign. He won 12 of the last 13 matches that year to finish at the top level with the ATP Masters 1000 trophies in Madrid and Paris. In Madrid, he beat Nadal, Djokovic and Federer in succession to win the title.

Jack Sock, 2017
Sock's surprise Paris title in 2017 was doubly important: In addition to the title, the result earned him a spot in that year's Nitto ATP Finals, where he reached the semifinals.

The American battled to get back to his five-match winning streak in Paris, winning two breaks to beat Kyle Edmund in his opener and later battling Fernando Verdasco and Filip Krajinovic. A 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Serbian qualifier Krajinovic earned Sock his only ATP Masters 1000 title.

“Crazy things can happen,” Sock, then 25, said of his run. “That's sports, that's why we play.”

Sock became the first American to claim a Masters 1000 title since Andy Roddick won in Miami in 2010; it wasn't until Taylor Fritz's 2022 Indian Wells title that another player from the United States surpassed that mark. Sock's victory also had an impact on the Big Four, as it meant that – for the first time since 2004 – more than three Masters 1000 titles were won by players outside that elite group.

Jack Sock celebrates at the 2017 Rolex Paris Masters. Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images.

Karen Khachanov, 2018
After saving two match points and surviving a 10/8 third-set break against John Isner in the third round, Khachanov made quick work of fourth seed Alexander Zverev and sixth seed Dominic Thiem to reach the first – and so far, only – ATP Masters 1000 finals.

The level of difficulty will only increase in the final round, when Novak Djokovic crosses the net in pursuit of his fifth Paris title. Against a fourth consecutive Top 10 opponent, the 22-year-old Khachanov produced a dominant display to claim a 7-5, 6-4 victory.

“It means the world to me,” said Khachanov, who will climb to the PIF ATP Ranking of No. 8 the following year. “I couldn't be happier to end the season like this.”

The result stands as the biggest of his career, matching his 2021 Olympic semi-final victory which earned him a silver medal. Now the 28-year-old Khachanov has reached the semifinals of the US Open (2022) and the Australian Open (2023).

Holger Rune, 2022
The fearless 19-year-old Rune saved three match points en route to his first ATP Masters 1000 crown in Paris, but that wasn't the most eye-catching statistic in his breakthrough week. After saving those match points in his first win against Stan Wawrinka, Rune rattled off five straight Top 10s to complete his shock streak. The Dane defeated Hubert Hurkacz, Andrey Rublev, Carlos Alcaraz and Felix Auger-Aliassime without dropping a set before meeting champion Djokovic in the final.

From the sitting position, Rune showed nerves of steel to attack the Serbs in a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory. In the final game of the match, he saved six break points as he went deep to secure the biggest win of his life in spectacular fashion.

“It was the hardest race of my life,” he said of the marathon. “My heart almost went into my mind. I was just starting to think about the break. I'm proud that I can finish it.”

On the heels of those five Top 10 wins, Rune earned a spot in that elite group as he left Paris at No. 10 in the PIF ATP Rankings. The Dane finished the 2022 season by reaching four straight finals and claiming three titles. Buoyed by that success, he moved up to PIF ATP Ranking number 4 in 2023.