Star in the making
TORONTO Canadians were captivated by the play of Denis Shapovalov at the Rogers Cup in Montreal. The rest of the world took notice at the U.S. Open in New York.
The 18-year-old went from playing lowlevel tennis tournaments earlier this summer to wowing crowds in the intense spotlight of a Grand Slam stadium court. Shapovalov has rocketed up the world rankings while taking out some of the sport’s biggest names along the way.
His days of relative anonymity are over. Shapovalov, who will walk the red carpet at the Toronto International Film Festival opener on Thursday, is a bona fide star in the making.
“My life has definitely changed in the past month,” he said.
Shapovalov delivered one of the Canadian sporting moments of the year at Uniprix Stadium last month by dispatching current No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the round of 16. He also surprised Juan Martin del Potro that week before eventually falling to Alexander Zverev in the semifinals.
At the U.S. Open, Shapovalov had to qualify just to enter the main draw of the final Slam of the season. He again came through with big wins — most notably an upset of eighth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga — before losing in the fourth round to 12th seed Pablo Carreno Busta.
Not a bad stretch for a player who was barely in the top 200 just three months ago.
“Beating Rafa is just the cherry on top,” Shapovalov said at a media availability at a downtown hotel. “Just being able to compete with Rafa, it’s a huge confidence boost. Just seeing that the match was tight, it really made me feel like I belonged on the court with these guys.”
Canadian tennis sensation Shapovalov reflects on wild month