Shapovalov hoping to work himself into NBO after promising showing in Mexico

Understandably so. 

After all, he upset behemoths Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro in back-to-back outings with remarkable shotmaking as an 18-year-old competing in only his sixth top-tier tournament. 

But speaking with reporters Monday before his opener against American Zachary Svajda, Shapovalov pointed out that he is a far different player than nine years ago. 

He feels his returns are better, he is “grinding” more and changing the pace as he adapts to slower playing conditions. 

“Beforehand if you had a weapon, then you had a big difference than a lot of other guys, but nowadays, the weapons are not so visible, unless it's a huge, huge serve or forehand,” he explained. “Can't really use my game from back then.” 

Yet Shapovalov’s game continues to be more potent than most. 

When he is firing, Shapovalov remains one of the game’s most watchable players — and the 27-year-old showed glimpses of his finest tennis last week in Los Cabos, Mexico. 

He almost successfully defended his title, reaching the final before losing to Arthur Gea of France. 

That came after Shapovalov faced a race against time to play in Mexico after retiring in the first round at Wimbledon in late June. He ran into a courtside barrier and injured his left shoulder while he was already dealing with a more problematic rib injury. 

“It was nice to have a bit of a break after Wimbledon,” he said. “I wasn't even sure if I would be ready for Los Cabos and what condition I would be in physically and tennis-wise. So, to have a week like last week, it shows that the game is there. Now, okay, let's try to get there physically as best as possible, keep working at it.

“It's obvious I've had the game. I have the game still. It's just about putting it together.”

Of course, Shapovalov wants to put it together at the NBO. It might be hard to believe, but “Shapo,” as he is known, hasn’t won a match in Montreal or Toronto since 2019. 

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The mind is willing but Shapovalov admitted last week’s exertions in Los Cabos might impact his Montreal hopes. 

He competed in temperatures of around 30 degrees in all of his matches with humidity of around 70 percent. And in the semifinals against Cam Norrie, Shapovalov battled for two-and-a half hours in a scrap that finished at midnight local time. 

Shapovalov said Monday he was feeling it in his knee and “other parts” of his body. 

“You know anytime that you're going to go deep in a tournament, it's going to jeopardize perhaps your preparation for the next event,” he said. “So you just have to take it for what it is.

“For sure, it's not going to be easy. Hoping to get my feet wet a little bit today, if the rain stops, but if not, I just have to kind of go out there and play and try to use the match to get as comfortable as I can and figure out a way to at least win the first match and then give myself a little bit more time.”

He lost to Learner Tien in Toronto in the first round last year after a gap of one week between Los Cabos and the NBO.

Photo: Mathieu Bélanger/Tennis Canada