It took Rune to three sets to beat Ruud 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-2 to reach his third clay-court final of the season. Back in March he had won in Germany and was later beaten by Andrey Rublev in Monte Carlos.
Both players came out firing and it was equally matched as a tie-break was needed to decide the outcome.
The semifinal between Ruud and Rune was the first All-Scandinavian Masters 1000 semifinals since 1997.
“I had nothing to lose in the second [set], so I just told myself to play freely and enjoy it as I thought it would be my last set here,” Rune said. “I told myself to play aggressively and enjoy it and I did it and that was the key to comeback.”
Rune has been doing impressively well on clay this season and he holds a record of 13-2. If he wins in Rome, he will next set his sights on the French Open which starts May 28.
“I really played some of my best tennis in the past two matches against Novak and then Casper,” Rune said.
“Two difficult players to play, so I had to find my best tennis and I actually didn’t find it today, only at the end and that is why I turned it around.”
He will next face Daniil Medvedev who defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in his own semifinals match.