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Shapovalov Takeaways: Young Sensation Hungry for More



The fairy tale run of 18-year-old Denis Shapovalov is over—now the real work begins. Shapovalov fell in straight sets to Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta on Day 7 at the U.S. Open but there’s plenty of positives to take away for the rising Canadian.

More: Sevastova Stuns Sharapova, If You Want to Call it an Upset

“The biggest lesson is that I'm able to compete with these guys,” he said in an upbeat press conference on Sunday. “I still think I have a lot of work to do.”

After entering the Rogers Cup in Montreal with just three career wins to his name, Shapovalov stormed onto the scene when he defeated Juan Martin del Potro and Rafael Nadal in consecutive matches en route to becoming the youngest semifinalist in Masters 1000 history (the prestigious ATP series dates back to 1990).

Two weeks later he was back at it, plowing his way through qualifying and reaching the second week in New York, which made him the youngest player to reach the round of 16 at the U.S. Open since 1989. He also became the youngest player to reach the second week at any major since 1999.

These are feats that even Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were not able to accomplish at such a young age.

Shapovalov is not letting things get to his head and he’s already pledging to put in the hard yards this off-season in order to ensure further progress up the ATP rankings ladder.

“Yeah, I mean, it's just been, you know, two tournaments, but I really feel like I have to put in a lot of work this offseason to try and secure my spot in these rankings and just to be able to compete with these guys, yeah, week in and week out,” he said.

As good as his tennis was in New York, Shapovalov says the experience he will most remember was hearing the applause of the rowdy New York crowds.

“Honestly, I think it was the sound, the roar of the crowd when I put my bags down and I went to applaud them,” he said. “Yeah, they were all screaming. It was so loud, and it was a great moment for me. It really has a special place in my heart, and, you know, now New York for sure, it will always have a special place for me. You know, hopefully I can come back here for many more years and just try to do some damage.”

It’s hard to imagine that he won’t.

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