Ruud's first child is due to be born on the final weekend of the Australian Open (Jan 31-Feb 1), which could present the unique but unlikely scenario of the 27-year-old having to forfeit his fourth Grand Slam final to return home to Norway.
He said on Saturday that, if that were to occur, he would have additional discussions with Maria about whether to come home immediately or play for his maiden Grand Slam title, but he will otherwise depart Australia the moment he gets the call.
"At any stage before (the final weekend) I'll jump on any flight," Ruud said.
"I've given everything I can to this sport, but there is more to life than just tennis. We have accepted that, if she goes into labour, I most likely won't be able to be there during the process, but I want to be there as soon as I can and don't want to risk staying here playing match after match until I'm two days away.
"That's going to be the call, and as long as I don't get the call and I can step out onto the court knowing everything is fine at home, I'll give it my all and see how long I can stay."
When asked about the mental and psychological difficulties of preparing for a Grand Slam knowing he may have to leave at any moment, Ruud said he was at ease having received the blessing of his pregnant partner to travel to Melbourne.
"We've discussed the scenarios openly and she's been very supportive and patient and she's allowed me to come here in the first place," he added.
"I must give her a lot of credit for that. It was a mutual decision and everyone was fine with it.
"Whilst I'm here I'll focus on tennis and I'll try to give my free time off the court to Maria. The time difference is quite a big factor here, but the hours that I have in the evening and morning, I'll try to give to Maria. There's only so much you can do on the phone."
"She's been told to take it easy and stay home and not do too much. Hopefully I'll get to be there, and if not, I'll be a day late and that will be fine as well."
Ruud also spoke of his "honour" to play an exhibition match with 44-year-old Roger Federer at the tournament on Friday, describing the six-time Australian Open winner as "smooth as ever".
"It was really fun," Ruud explained.
"I was lucky to play against him once in my life at Roland-Garros. I haven't hit with him since then and that was in 2019, so it's been almost seven years already.
"It was just fun. He looks as smooth as ever and he's an icon on and off the court. It was fun to play a few points with him and he hit some good shots. We both took it fairly easy but it was fun for me and the crowd."