Tallon Griekspoor had taken his first two career meetings with Holger Rune, and when he claimed a tense opening set during Thursday’s first men’s singles quarterfinal at the BNP Paribas Open, the 28-year-old Dutchman looked to be headed for a third triumph over the Dane. 

Not so fast. 

Rune flipped the script on his rival and produced an epic fightback, winning 12 of the final 15 games to reach his maiden semifinal in the California desert, 5-7, 6-0, 6-3, and his sixth Masters 1000 quarterfinal overall. 

“It was tough because he was really playing well in the first set,” 21-year-old Rune said on court after his first career win over Griekspoor. “I changed my tactical plan during the match and that made it more difficult for him – I’m very happy I could stay composed when it mattered.”

What started as a seesaw battle between evenly matched antagonists turned into a shotmaking clinic for the Dane, who routinely fired passing shots past Griekspoor as he reeled off game after game in the second and third sets. 

It started well for Griekspoor, in his first Masters 1000 quarterfinal. 

Rune yanked a backhand just wide, handing a second break to Griekspoor at 6-5 in the opening set, and the Dutchman then saved four break points when serving out the set to take the opener. 

A second-set turnaround commenced quickly, and as Griekspoor’s game went flat, Rune dialed his energy into focus and took over. 

A six-minute delay for sunshowers before Griekspoor served at 0-5, 0-40 couldn’t halt the rout. Upon return Griekspoor saved the first set point he faced but a Rune net cord winner ended the 28-minute stanza.

15 unforced errors against just one winner was the downfall for Griekspoor across the whitewashed set – he won just 2 of 14 points on serve in set two. 

“I know how Tallon plays,” Rune said. “I’ve watched him a bunch. I had to adjust, because in the beginning I thought I was playing the right way but he was just on me. The fact that I changed a couple of things in the game [helped me to be] clear enough in my mind to find new ways of trying to hurt him.” 

The third set presented an opportunity for Greikspoor to right the ship, but the Dane wouldn’t allow it. When a backhand volley from the Dutchman drifted long, Rune had the 3-1 lead in the deciding set, and he quickly consolidated to put the scoreboard pressure on his adversary. He held serve the rest or the way to clinch the win in two hours and eight minutes. 

Rune will face either Arthur Fils or Daniil Medvedev on semifinal Saturday in the desert.