Reilly Opelka began his 2025 Laver Cup campaign with a loss to Casper Ruud, and his vice captain, Pat Rafter, has explained how he can improve.
Opelka lost in straight sets to Casper Ruud in the opening match of the Laver Cup, which was followed by two more victories for Team Europe as they picked up a 3-1 lead.
The American giant is the lowest-ranked player in the Laver Cup, but Opelka has loved working under captain Andre Agassi.
Opelka’s vice captain, Rafter, has suggested improvements the American can make after his opening defeat.
Pat Rafter wants to see Reilly Opelka add volleying to his game
Rafter was pleased with Opelka’s display at the Laver Cup, but he did notice some room for improvement for the American.
“He’s got scope to even work on his game. I see little things where he can tighten,” said Rafter during his post-match interview at the Laver Cup.
“Maybe coming in a little bit more behind those big forehands. Sometimes you think he relies on hitting another big shot, but he can. That’s his problem. He can hit it,” said Rafter.
The Aussie also revealed the one shot he’d like to see Opelka attempt a few more times on the court. “I would like to come and see him put away a volley every now and then,” revealed Rafter.
“Once he starts putting that more and more into his game — he did it a few times today, and it worked well,” he continued.
“There could be more times I think he can use that aspect of his game to put more pressure on the other guys.”
Despite the constructive criticism, Rafter was happy with Opelka’s performance in San Francisco on a difficult hard court.
“In saying that, I don’t know what else he could have done today on that surface, which does not favor him one bit,” he said. “So it was really impressive, and we’re really proud of him on the team.”
Reilly Opelka has an unwanted record at the 2025 Laver Cup
Opelka’s appearance at the 2025 Laver Cup is not his first time at the tournament, and he’s yet to taste success.
The American played at the tournament in Boston in 2021 and lost both of his ties in singles and doubles action.
Just like 2025, Opelka lost his opening round game to Casper Ruud in 2021 and followed it up with a doubles loss alongside Denis Shapovalov against Alexander Zverev and Andrey Rublev.
Opelka will be desperate to feature again in the 2025 edition to pick up a long-awaited victory in the tournament.
