Denis Shapovalov was halfway off the court when he set down his bags, put a hand to his heart and waved goodbye to the crowd on Arthur Ashe Stadium following his fourth-round loss to Pablo Carreno Busta at last year’s US Open. The roar was deafening. A new tennis star had been born and the fans in New York knew it. In one month’s time, the 18-year-old Canadian had morphed from rising prospect to legitimate threat on the ATP tour. But his spellbinding summer streak almost ended before it began.
Given a wild card at the Rogers Cup in Montreal, Shapovalov faced four match points in his first-round match against Rogerio Dutra Silva before squeaking by. Then, the former junior No. 2 and 2016 Wimbledon boys’ champion went on to upset Juan Martin del Potro in the second round, setting up a third-rounder with Rafael Nadal that would become a thriller. With his backwards hat cinched tight over his flowing blond locks, Shapovalov played just as forceful and physical as his childhood idol that magical August evening. As the home crowd cheered him on, Shapovalov fired a cathartic winner to upset Nadal in a third-set tiebreaker, going on to win one more match before falling in the semifinals to Alexander Zverev.
It was an exhilarating breakthrough, sure. It was also easy to wonder if those four wins on Shapovalov’s home soil were a fluke. The teenager cleared things up at the US Open, qualifying for the main draw and then upsetting world No. 12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on his way to becoming the youngest player since Michael Chang to reach the fourth round in Flushing Meadows.
