Denis Shapovalov easily reached the quarterfinals, beating Borges 2:0, in sets 6:2, 6:4.
The Canadian celebrated after just an hour on Center Court, which speaks volumes for how he played.
Apart from him, Medjedovic, O’Connell and Serundlo have already reached the quarterfinals.
“I won convincingly. I knew that if I played hard from the beginning I could hope to prevail. I felt very comfortable on the court. I’m in good shape, I played aggressively, I didn’t give him many chances in the first set. Later, the pressure was on him. I am happy about my game and the victory,” explained Shapovalov.
Shapovalov, who reached the quarterfinals from the qualifiers, also referred to the organization of the Belgrade Open.
“As for the tournament itself, the Arena is fantastic, as is the court. The people are super friendly, I enjoy it here, the organization is great. I know how difficult it was to organize everything because it was at the last minute and there was also a time limit. It turned out great though. During the weekend, I had huge support from the stands, which I’m glad about, although if I play against Serbian players, I know it won’t be like that.”
In the next round of the competition, the Canadian will play against O’Connell, considering how he started, he could even reach the finals.
“It is still too early to talk about the final and the title. It’s the last weekend of the season, I’m playing well, certainly these victories will help me to make a step up and improve my ranking. It’s still a long way off, because of the schedule, we knew it was going to happen, as the players quit. That would have to change, disrupt the tournament a bit, but yes, the chances increase a bit”.
Shapovalov also said he showed improvement in his game.
“I was there, I had many victories, I managed to come back. I was more careful, so as not to injure myself, the last three months I managed to go a step further, you can see the progress in stability, so yes. The game is there, I hope I can keep it up,” Shapovalov said with a smile.
