By Chris Oddo | Wednesday March 27, 2019
Whether he was motivated by his compatriot Felix Auger-Aliassime, or just plain motivated, Denis Shapovalov secured his biggest victory in quite some time at the Miami Open early on Wednesday morning.
The Canadian edged Stefanos Tsitsipas 4-6 6-3 7-6(3) to earn his first Top 10 win since he stunned Rafael Nadal at the Rogers Cup in the summer of 2017. He books a quarter-final clash with American Frances Tiafoe, who edged David Goffin 7-5 7-6(6) on Tuesday to book his first Masters 1000 quarter-final appearance.
It has been a brilliant week for the youngsters in Miami. Three players aged 21 and younger have reached the quarters, with Canada’s Auger-Aliassime becoming the youngest to reach the last eight at Miami since 2001 when he defeated Nikoloz Basilashvili on Tuesday.
Shapovalov improved to 2-1 against Tsitsipas with a hard-fought victory that lasted two hours and 14 minutes and ended just before 2 AM, thanks to a late start due to rain on Tuesday evening.
The pair traded sets and played a crisp decider, with neither player budging on serve through the first 12 games.
Shapovalov won 26 of 33 points on serve in the final set; Tsitsipas won 28 of 35 and neither player faced a break point.
“I knew Stefanos was going to be a tough match. I was ready for a long battle and, sure enough, it went the distance,” said Shapovalov, according to ATPWorldTour.com. “I’m just happy with the way I controlled myself and the way I played today.”
The 19-year-old Canadian will bid to reach his fifth career semi-final and third at the Masters 1000 level when he faces Tiafoe on Friday. He has yet to reach an ATP final.
Shapovalov split his two previous meetings with Tiafoe, falling to him at Delray Beach last season and gaining revenge at Cincinnati.
“It’s going to be an exciting match. We’re both shotmakers, so I’m just ready for another fun, tough match,” he said
Tsitsipas will head to the clay with a record of 17-7 on the season. He reached the Australian Open in January and has played finals in Marseille and Dubai.