Shapovalov accelerates into new territory
Djokovic blocks 22-year-old’s path to final
After a physically draining and mentally straining marathon victory Wednesday, Denis Shapovalov has reached the loftiest place in his career.
Now, the only thing standing in the way of him reaching the Wimbledon finals is knocking off Novak Djokovic, who is on a determined quest to cement himself as perhaps the greatest player in tennis history.
It could be labelled Denis vs. Goliath, but that’s Friday’s challenge.
On Wednesday Shapovalov knocked off Russia’s Karen Khachanov 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-4, finding the necessary poise in the pivotal fifth set.
Later Wednesday, Montreal’s Felix Auger-aliassime lost his bid to join Shapovalov in the semifinals. Italy’s Matteo Berrettini used his powerful serve to pull away from Auger-aliassime in the 6-3, 5-7, 7-5, 6-3 victory, where the 20-yearold Canadian experienced some bouts of nervousness.
Berrettini will now face Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, who delivered an upset by knocking off Wimbledon legend Roger Federer 6-3, 7-6, 6-0.
The key for Shapovalov was keeping his focus in rallying from being behind two sets to one against Khachanov. As expected, the Canadian played more of a risk-reward game — producing more winners and unforced errors on both his forehand and backhand — than his Russian opponent.
Shapovalov bruised through the fourth set to even the match at two sets apiece. The ultimate turning point came when he broke Khachanov ’s serve during a nine-minute game with the fifth set tied 4-4.
From there, he served out the match. While the 22-year-old, seeded 10th at the tournament, has previously pushed to succeed at Wimbledon and the other three Grand Slam tournaments — the Australian Open, the French Open and the U.S. Open — he has lost his composure in the match-defining moments. Not so Wednesday against the 25th seeded Khachanov, keeping his cool throughout.
“It was definitely super, super tough,” Shapovalov told the Court 1 crowd following the win. “And having the craziest game of my life I think there (at 4-4 in the fifth set) ... being able to win that was massive.”