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World No. 8 Casper Ruud has been confirmed for Santiago, per Michal Samulski. Ruud, 23, is set to make his second appearance on the clay courts of Santiago. Ruud fell just short of winning it all in his Santiago debut as he ended runner-up to Thiago Seyboth Wild.
Cristian Garin, who is enjoying a career-high ranking of No. 17 in the world, has also signed up to play Santiago. Hwoever, the biggest name at the Santiago event in 2022 is set to be two-time French Open runner-up Dominic Thiem.
Ruud enjoyed a great 2021 season
Ruud won five titles in 2021 and four of those five titles came on clay. “It has been a great year for me and my development as a tennis player,” Ruud said. “Getting to know my opponents more and playing this tournament has been a great experience.
To finish a very good year off here in Turin has been a great experience for me and something I will be eager to try and repeat and be back here next year." Ruud was beaten by Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev at the ATP Finals and after the losses he vowed to work hard to return even better in 2022.
“I got the perfect feedback on what I have to work on in my game to compete with the top guys in the world for next year,” Ruud said. “I played the World No. 1 and No. 2 this week and they beat me fairly comfortably, so that makes me want to seek revenge and become a better player next year.
“When next year starts, I will have it in the back of my mind. Every week and every match matters. It was only a couple of matches that made the difference of qualifying for the tournament. I am proud of the year and am looking forward to next year. If I can keep playing well, I can have another year like this year."