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Meet the new rock star of tennis! Denis Shapovalov aims to be real menace as he rockets up the rankings
PUBLISHED: 17:30 EDT, 29 June 2018
Denis Shapovalov has always wanted to be a rock star. He admits as much as he larks around in the studio for a pre-Wimbledon photo shoot.
This is one ambition the 19-year-old Canadian may not technically get to achieve, but he is already coming somewhere close to it through his prowess on the court and his flowing blond locks. Shapovalov finds himself as something of a tennis pop idol, his appearances around the world attracting the kind of reaction that was once the preserve of Andre Agassi and Bjorn Borg.
There is clearly substance beneath the hype. This is confirmed by the cold-hearted arithmetic of the ranking computer, which shows him as the world's highest-ranked teenager at No 26.
There are many sober judges of the game who expect, before long, that he will emerge as a Grand Slam champion, quite possibly at Wimbledon. His flowing southpaw game, with an elegant single-handed backhand, was already enough last summer to cause a sensation in his home Canadian Open when he beat Rafael Nadal en route to the semi-finals.
The excitement around him, which included making the last four of the Madrid Open in May, is hardly dampened by his distinctive beach-bum look. 'I stand out a bit with the long hair, it's unusual, you don't see a lot of people with flowing hair,' he says.
A lot go short, mine is more a 1980s or 90s look but when I was growing up I had long hair and then I joined the air cadets and they made me cut it. I was doing it to rebel against discipline. My best friend has long hair and convinced me to grow it again. I'm glad I stuck with it, it's kind of like Borg.'
Shapovalov is an easy-going character, much more so than the impression he gave in the shocking incident last year when he was playing Kyle Edmund in the Davis Cup match in Ottawa. Swatting a ball away in a moment of anger, he accidentally hit the umpire in the face, dangerously close to his eye, and was immediately defaulted.
He no longer discusses this, saying he has learnt his lesson and moved on. Another memory from that day was the way he publicly fronted up 20 minutes later, apologising in a remarkably mature manner for a then 17-year-old.
Like so many top tennis players, Shapovalov has an eclectic background and parents originally from eastern Europe who chose to make a new life away from their roots. Although not Jewish, he was born in Tel Aviv before moving to Toronto at nine months old.
He takes up the story: 'My mum and dad are from the Soviet Union and that was falling apart. My mum was a tennis player and her coach was from Israel, so she moved there to train. My dad came with her. They had my brother and me and they decided to go to Canada.
'I've never known anything other than Canada, I am Canadian, but I have Russian blood in me and it's my first language. I have some relatives there and some in Greece, my grandfather was Greek so I have family all over Europe.'
Having played ice hockey, and shown an aptitude for volleyball, he was guided towards tennis by the fact his mother became a coach. While the majority of players opt for a double-handed backhand it turns out to be no coincidence he went for a single-hander, which has become his signature. It is a stroke whose demise has long been predicted but Roger Federer's exquisite use of it has kept it alive.
'I had a picture on my bedroom wall of Roger lining up for a backhand. I would wake up seeing him setting up for the backhand and watch videos of him play and try to have the same kind of strokes and play the same kind of game.'
He was not marked out for immediate stardom, and was not even ranked No 1 in Canada in his age group in the years leading up to him winning the junior Wimbledon title just two years ago.
'I only became national-age No 1 when I was about 15. When I was young my mum made me play an aggressive game and come into the net. It's tough when you're young, I didn't have the strength to get the high balls. But I knew it would pay off when I got bigger.'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/te...ovalov-aims-real-menace-rockets-rankings.html
- Denis Shapovalov is close to being a tennis pop idol with his striking appearance
- The Canadian is the world's highest-ranked teenager with a ranking of No 26
- Judges of the sport feel it is a matter of time before he wins a Grand Slam title
- His southpaw style saw him beat Rafael Nadal at the Canadian Open last year
PUBLISHED: 17:30 EDT, 29 June 2018
Denis Shapovalov has always wanted to be a rock star. He admits as much as he larks around in the studio for a pre-Wimbledon photo shoot.
This is one ambition the 19-year-old Canadian may not technically get to achieve, but he is already coming somewhere close to it through his prowess on the court and his flowing blond locks. Shapovalov finds himself as something of a tennis pop idol, his appearances around the world attracting the kind of reaction that was once the preserve of Andre Agassi and Bjorn Borg.
There is clearly substance beneath the hype. This is confirmed by the cold-hearted arithmetic of the ranking computer, which shows him as the world's highest-ranked teenager at No 26.
There are many sober judges of the game who expect, before long, that he will emerge as a Grand Slam champion, quite possibly at Wimbledon. His flowing southpaw game, with an elegant single-handed backhand, was already enough last summer to cause a sensation in his home Canadian Open when he beat Rafael Nadal en route to the semi-finals.
The excitement around him, which included making the last four of the Madrid Open in May, is hardly dampened by his distinctive beach-bum look. 'I stand out a bit with the long hair, it's unusual, you don't see a lot of people with flowing hair,' he says.
A lot go short, mine is more a 1980s or 90s look but when I was growing up I had long hair and then I joined the air cadets and they made me cut it. I was doing it to rebel against discipline. My best friend has long hair and convinced me to grow it again. I'm glad I stuck with it, it's kind of like Borg.'
Shapovalov is an easy-going character, much more so than the impression he gave in the shocking incident last year when he was playing Kyle Edmund in the Davis Cup match in Ottawa. Swatting a ball away in a moment of anger, he accidentally hit the umpire in the face, dangerously close to his eye, and was immediately defaulted.
He no longer discusses this, saying he has learnt his lesson and moved on. Another memory from that day was the way he publicly fronted up 20 minutes later, apologising in a remarkably mature manner for a then 17-year-old.
Like so many top tennis players, Shapovalov has an eclectic background and parents originally from eastern Europe who chose to make a new life away from their roots. Although not Jewish, he was born in Tel Aviv before moving to Toronto at nine months old.
He takes up the story: 'My mum and dad are from the Soviet Union and that was falling apart. My mum was a tennis player and her coach was from Israel, so she moved there to train. My dad came with her. They had my brother and me and they decided to go to Canada.
'I've never known anything other than Canada, I am Canadian, but I have Russian blood in me and it's my first language. I have some relatives there and some in Greece, my grandfather was Greek so I have family all over Europe.'
Having played ice hockey, and shown an aptitude for volleyball, he was guided towards tennis by the fact his mother became a coach. While the majority of players opt for a double-handed backhand it turns out to be no coincidence he went for a single-hander, which has become his signature. It is a stroke whose demise has long been predicted but Roger Federer's exquisite use of it has kept it alive.
'I had a picture on my bedroom wall of Roger lining up for a backhand. I would wake up seeing him setting up for the backhand and watch videos of him play and try to have the same kind of strokes and play the same kind of game.'
He was not marked out for immediate stardom, and was not even ranked No 1 in Canada in his age group in the years leading up to him winning the junior Wimbledon title just two years ago.
'I only became national-age No 1 when I was about 15. When I was young my mum made me play an aggressive game and come into the net. It's tough when you're young, I didn't have the strength to get the high balls. But I knew it would pay off when I got bigger.'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/te...ovalov-aims-real-menace-rockets-rankings.html
