Denis Shapovalov finally showed all his skills in Dallas last week. The Canadian ace had one of the best weeks of his career and seemed very confident on the tennis court, being able to show all that talent that had been glimpsed at the beginning of his career.
After reaching the semifinal at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships – in which he was defeated by Novak Djokovic in a match in which he had several chances – Denis’ career ran aground and almost everyone thought he would never return to the highest level.
‘Shapo’ is still a long way from the top positions of the ATP rankings and must work hard to reduce his gap to his rivals, but the success in Belgrade at the end of 2024 and this good start to 2025 lead us to be optimistic for the rest of his season.
Connors analyzed Shapovalov’s win in Dallas
After clinching the title in Dallas last week, fans are back to cheer the Canadian player and hope that 2025 will be the right year for his definitive relaunch on the professional tour after too many dark seasons.
On the latest edition of his podcast, American legend Jimmy Connors analyzed Shapovalov’s current status: “We have been waiting for him for several years and we hoped that a player with his talent would finally be more consistent. I always thought he had the talent to reach the top of the ATP rankings and win prestigious tournaments, including Grand Slam titles.
However – for a variety of reasons – his career has been very different from expectations so far.”
Jimmy continued: “Maybe this could be a new beginning. After enchanting everyone in the early part of his career, Shapo had to face the harsh reality and now he is back to working hard. We know that he has the right skills to emerge in an era like this. I hope he has understood what the right direction is and that he can compete with the best very soon.”
Only time will tell if the second part of Denis’ career will be full of satisfactions.
Tennis World USA