Denis Shapovalov of Toronto, Ontario, is in the third round of Wimbledon. On Thursday, Shapovalov defeated German Danny Altmaier 7-6, 6-3, 1-6, 6-7, 6-4 in the second round of the third major of the year. Shapovalov won the first set tiebreak 7-3 and lost the fourth set tiebreak 7-3.
Two statistics that favored Shapovalov were aces and second serve point winning percentage. Shapovalov had nine aces compared to Altmaier’s six, and Shapovalov won 71% of his second serve points while Altmaier won only 59%. Shapovalov won the second round match despite winning fewer points overall. Shapovalov won 145 and Altmaier won 152.
According to the world rankings, Shapovalov’s victory over Altmaier was a surprise. Shapovalov is ranked 121st and Altmaier is ranked 80th.
Next up for Shapovalov is 14th seed Ben Shelton of the United States. Shapovalov and Shelton have something in common as they have both reached a Grand Slam semifinal, losing to world number two Novak Djokovic of Serbia. Shapovalov accomplished this feat at Wimbledon in 2021 and Shelton at the 2023 United States Open. This will be the first-ever meeting between Shelton and Shapovalov.
Shapovalov is one of two Canadians in the third round. The other is Bianca Andreescu of Mississauga, Ontario.
“Gamer. Introvert. Problem solver. Creator. Thinker. Lifelong food evangelist. Alcohol advocate.”