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The No.14 admitted after the win he had feared he woulnd't be able to finish the match after receiving treatment on his ribs after just three games.

But the Norwegian battled through the pain barrier and fended off a strong challenge from his Argentinian opponent, saving a staggering 15 of 18 break points actoss an almost two-hour-long contest.

“I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to finish the match, honestly,” Ruud said.

“I felt something in my rib during the warm up, just towards the end before going out [on court], and I felt it in nearly every shot, especially the serve.

"Luckily, I got some quick treatment on it. There’s not too much you can do, you only have three minutes [with the physio]. So I will go and check it out more now.

“I got a couple of painkillers, which is not the ideal thing, but at the same time in a situation like this, you have to do that now and then. I was able to just play one game at a time really. It was easing and getting better as the match went on.”

Ruud is a 12-time ATP Tour champion, and also reached the Masters 1000 finals in Miami in 2022 and Monte-Carlo in 2024.

If he wins in Madrid, he could return to as high as No.6 in the world rankings.