Ruud beats Draper to earn title at Madrid Open and take first Masters 1000 crown

Norway's Casper Ruud won his first Masters 1000 title on Sunday, storming to a 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 victory over fifth seed Jack Draper of Britain in the Madrid Open final, with a gutsy performance that showcased his clay-court mettle.

The 26-year-old 14th seed, competing in his 18th clay-court final, overcame both a rib injury sustained in the semifinals and a resilient Draper to secure the trophy. The Scandinavian had already dispatched Taylor Fritz, Daniil Medvedev, and Francisco Cerundolo over the course of the tournament in the Spanish capital.

"It's been a long time coming. I have been dreaming about this since I was young. I knew Jack was playing unbelievably, so I had to bring my A-plus game," Ruud said in his on-court interview after the match.

The Norwegian had previously reached three Grand Slam finals, including two at the French Open, along with Masters 1000 title matches in Miami in 2022 and Monte-Carlo last year.

Ruud staged an impressive comeback from 5-3 down in the opening set, reeling off four straight games and breaking Draper's serve twice, en route to claiming the frame 7-5.

The Briton refused to go quietly in the second, however, holding to love to pull level at 3-3, before breaking Ruud twice while making just one unforced error to force a decider.

Although Draper was more composed at the start of the third set, it was Ruud who seized the initiative, breaking the Briton to take a 3-2 lead before securing the title with a hold to love.

Despite the loss, 23-year-old Indian Wells champion Draper will leapfrog Novak Djokovic, moving to a career-high number five in the world rankings on Monday.