By Chris Oddo | Monday October 23, 2017
Denis Shapovalov strengthened his Milan bid by defeating Japan's Yuichi Sugita in three sets in Basel on Monday.
Photo: Tennis TV
Denis Shapovalov rallied from a slow start to snap a three-match losing streak, defeating Japan’s Yuichi Sugita on his Basel debut. The 18-year-old improves to 9-7 on the season and will face either Adrian Mannarino or Ruben Bemelmans in the second round.
His victory also assures a place for Shapovalov in November's #NextGenATP Finals in Milan. The Canadian is the fourth player to qualify for the eight-player field.
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“I just picked it up a little bit I started going for my shots—I was hesitating a little bit in the first,” said Shapovalov, who finished with 13 aces and 39 of 51 first-serve points won.
He took an early break in the decider but was forced to go to the wire with Sugita after the 29-year-old broke him back in the seventh game of the decider.
Shapovalov cruised in the tiebreaker, winning the final three points and clinching his victory in two hours when Sugita double-faulted on match point.
“I feel like I have a lot of confidence under my belt,” he said. “I’ve had a great summer, a great year.”
“I think there’s still a lot of work I need to do go get to where I want to be in the world. There’s still a countless amount of hours that I have to spend on the court to achieve my goals.