The last time Denis Shapovalov played Kyle Edmund, a moment of frustration chucked him into worldwide condemnation. It was a bitter pill for the upcoming player to swallow, but instead of crumbling. He is letting his tennis do the talking at the Queen’s Club this week.
On a day when four seeded players took to the court, the rising star outshined them all with an epic 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-4, win over British hopeful Edmund. Engaged in a clash lasting over two hours, the 18-year-old managed to keep up with his opponent, who is ranked almost 150 places higher than him. The Current Wimbledon boys champion dropped his serve only once in the entire match as he pounded a total of 12 aces past a disappointed Edmund.
“The whole match it was very close, very tight. Yeah, it was very tough to be out there, but I was enjoying it. I was enjoying the fight.” Said Shapovalov.
With such little separating the two, it was nerves that decided the winner. As Edmund served to stay in the tournament, a double fault elevated Shapovalov to match points. The victory was then sealed after a rally concluded with an Edmund shank landing out of the court.
The feeling of jubilation following his second ATP Tour win was quite a contrast to what he felt prior to Monday’s clash. Earlier in the year he was disqualified from Canada’s Davis Cup tie with Great Britain after unintentionally hitting a ball into the umpire’s eye. The incident secured his country’s loss in the tie. Apprehension swirled round the Canadian as he feared reprisals from the British crowd for his previous mistake.
“I didn’t know how the crowd was going to be.” He said.
“Once I got into it, it was fine. I didn’t have many thoughts except I was thinking please don’t do anything dumb this match. So many cameras on me.”
Four months have passed since the infamous incident and Shapovalov seems to be a better person for it. The umpire, Arnaud Gabas, forgave him long ago and even joked after that Davis Cup that his injury would make the ‘chicks like him.’ As for the Canadian, he is just thankful that that chapter of his career has been firmly shut.
“I think it definitely had an impact on my life, on my family’s life, everyone that’s close to me. It hasn’t been easy. Especially at the time it was very tough with everyone’s comments. You know, just things that were happening.” The Canadian revelled.
A growing love for the grass
Growing up in a county vacant of grass courts, Shapovalov’s run to last year’s Wimbledon boys title seemed to be destiny. There are still doubts surrounding him due to not growing up on the surface. There were also similar ones spoken about by fellow countryman Milos Raonic last year before he reached the final at SW19. It is too premature to compare both players, but Shapovalov’s love for the grass continues to blossom.
“I have been playing just as great as I did last year, even better. So I think it’s a — I think it’s a surface I really enjoy.” He reflected.
On Wednesday the 18-year-old will have a shot against Tomas Berdych. Berdych defeated Steve Darcis 7-5, 6-3, in his first round match. His plan is to maintain a similar aggressive stance to the one displayed against Edmund. The only difference is that the Czech is a former top-10 player with a vast amount of experience under his belt.
“I’m going to stick to my game plan. Gonna serve big, go for my shots. If I have to adjust in the match, I will, but, you know, I always stick to my game plan and I always try to be the aggressor.” He concluded.
