Denis Shapovalov interview: “I’m still trying to get back to where I was before injury”
Back in the world’s top 30 after a serious knee injury, the Canadian is eyeing a big run at Wimbledon
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Should things go well for Denis Shapovalov in week one at Wimbledon, the Canadian could find himself up against world No 1 Jannik Sinner in the third round.
That match-up, should it happen, would be the perfect opportunity for Shapovalov to prove that he belongs at this level, having worked his way back up the rankings in the past year after a serious knee injury affected him badly in 2023 and early 2024.
Victory in Dallas in February showed Shapovalov still has the game and at the age of 26, he is rediscovering the kind of form that took him to the semi-finals in 2021 and into the world’s top 10. Now ranked 30, motivation is high.
“It’s good, it’s good,” Shapovalov told TennisMajors on the eve of the event. “I still feel like I’m trying to get back to to where I was prior to the injury. And I feel it’s kind of one step at a time.
“I had a lot of success in Dallas and then right after with Acapulco but kind of kind of stalled back a little bit. Obviously, the clay season is never easy for me, it kind of kills your confidence a little bit, makes you take a step back. So I wasn’t able to capitalise on any of those tournaments.
“But I’m happy with the grass. I feel like Wimbledon’s a good time for me to kind of perform and play well. And obviously the summer, leading up with Toronto and the hard courts as well, it’s kind of a good period for me. So I’m definitely very excited for for the tournaments to come.”
Memories of 2021 spurring him on
Shapovalov tested Djokovic in the semi-finals in 2021 and said the memories of that run are still fresh.
“Every year, coming back here, it’s a special feeling,” he said. “It’s one of the reasons why I like to come here a weekend in advance, just to kind of soak up those feelings of playing semis here one year and, and obviously, it’s the most prestigious tournament, I would say, in the in the world.
“So it’s very special to be here. I just enjoy my time here. And I think I feel even more privileged every time I get to step on a court here. Hopefully I can have another good run here.”
Shapovalov begins against Mariano Navone of Argentina and would then play either George Loffhagen of Britain or Pedro Martinez of Spain before a likely third-round clash against Sinner.
New coach Tillstrom by his side
The Canadian has reunited with Mikael Tillstrom, the former Swedish player, whom he worked with for a few weeks last year. Shapovalov had been coached by Janko Tipsarevic, but the pair recently split up.
“It was a mutual agreement between us,” Shapovalov told reporters. “We just felt like he has a lot of other obligations. He’s got his academy, he’s got so many different things going on. We just felt like we weren’t getting exactly the results we wanted together and we just felt like, okay, it’s tough for him to commit fully. I felt like I need somebody (for whom) the number one job is going to be the coach.
“With Mikael, it was kind of like a last minute thing, so, happy that he’s here. I worked with him a few weeks last year, he was helping me out between a few tournaments. I think it’s great, I think he’s got a great eye. He’s a great coach. He’s been around for for quite a while. Hopefully we can do some, some good stuff together.”
