September 18 2025 - Ruud Cobolli 1resize

Casper Ruud brought a madcap energy to Team Europe’s Media Day press conference at the 2025 Laver Cup, his first appearance since announcing he was expecting his first child with fiancée Maria Galligani.

🖥📱 Click here for live coverage of Casper Ruud vs. Reilly Opelka on TennisChannel.com

The former world No. 2 is set to kick off the eighth edition of the team competition in singles against Team World’s Reilly Opelka, and is already in rare form based on his pre-match quotes about fatherhood:

Laver Cup Animated: Andre Agassi—and the trophy he hopes to hold

Advertising

THE MODERATOR: Casper, firstly, congratulations on the announcement of the new family member coming along.

CASPER RUUD: Thank you.

THE MODERATOR: Have you thought about how that might be going to change everything for you as you start traveling the world with a young one?

CASPER RUUD: No, you know, honestly, I have not really, no (laughing). Yeah, let's just say I didn't play Wimbledon this year, and it was time to do something different. So we got something special coming this year, yeah. I have to say, yeah (laughing). Did some off-court work, and we're ready for next year, an exciting next year.

THE MODERATOR: So that's why you didn't turn up.

CASPER RUUD: Yeah, that's why I didn't go to Wimbledon. Everyone wondered…

Ruud indeed sat out the 2025 Wimbledon Championships after suffering an injury during his second round at Roland Garros, returning to action a month later at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad. He and Galligani announced their engagement last fall after dating since 2018.

The Norwegian will be making his fifth appearance at Laver Cup, boasting a 4-2 record that includes a 3-1 record in singles. In 2024, he suffered his lone singles loss to Francisco Cerundolo in the opening match of the competition, but rebounded in doubles alongside Carlos Alcaraz to help lead Team Europe to fifth victory by a score of 13-11.

“I'm excited to get started tomorrow for the team, and I have some experience doing that in the past,” Ruud added in press. “I look forward to doing it again, and hopefully get Team Europe off to a good start.

“[I’m having] fun with some new boys on the team. Three of them are rookies, as we maybe would say in Davis Cup terms, but we can bring it on here. Carlos and Sascha [Zverev] and I will try to guide them and be there for them if they need it, but they're great players, and they'll do just fine I think on the team. Great to have this week around again. It's really fun for everyone.”

Ruud and Opelka will be followed by two more Europe/World singles matches, first between Jakub Mensik and Alex Michelsen and later between Flavio Cobolli and Joao Fonseca. Alcaraz will play his first match since winning his second US Open title in doubles, partnering Zverev against Americans Michelsen and Taylor Fritz.