Denis Shapovalov (1999-), Russian-Canadian Tennis Pro, and the Youngest Top-30 Player since 2005

[DonRocks]

On 7/31/2017 at 3:41 PM, DonRocks said:

The date besides Félix Auger-Alissime's name isn't the year he went on tour; it's his birth year.

At age 16:

* He's the youngest player in the World Top 800 (currently ranked #749)

* He's the youngest player ever to qualify for, and win a main draw match, on the ATP Challenger Tour (the Challenger Tour is just one step below the full-fledged ATP World Tour - sort of like AAA Baseball). 

* He won the Sopra Steria de Lyon in June, making him the 7th-youngest player ever to win a Challenger tournament.

* He has won both the U.S. Open Junior Singles and Doubles titles.

Auger-Alissime is someone to look out for in future years - here's a highlight film of his Sopra Steria de Lyon victory. Notice the way he can play side-to-side, but also that he's not the least bit afraid to come to net: This represents the next generation of great tennis players (with Federer, and to a lesser degree, Sampras, already having paved the way). This will place more emphasis (slightly more) on speed and quickness than sheer endurance, and will probably make players like McEnroe and Sampras very happy. I don't think he's going to be able to get away with drop shotting this much as his competition gets better-and-better: You don't beat a great player hitting short.

Speaking of young Canadians ...

"'My Dream Came True Today,' Says Denis Shapovalov" by Peter Bodo on espn.com

[Steve R.]

Shapovalov out of Wimbledon in the 1st round.

[DonRocks]

On 7/2/2019 at 3:57 PM, Steve R. said:

Shapovalov out of Wimbledon in the 1st round.

Irony: I split up this thread, so each player would have his own; it's probably more interesting (for now) as a matched set.

"Auger-Aliassime, Shapovolov 1st Canadian Men's Duo To Reach Quarters of a Grand-Slam" on cbc.ca