Canada's Denis Shapovalov advances to third round at Wimbledon

Denis Shapovalov of Canada reacts after winning a point against Daniel Altmaier of Germany during their second round match at the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Thursday, July 4, 2024. (Alberto Pezzali / The Canadian Press / AP)

London — Canada's Denis Shapovalov is off to the third round of Wimbledon following a hard-fought 7-6 (3), 6-3, 1-6, 6-7 (3), 6-4 win over Germany's Daniel Altmaier on Thursday.

In an uneven effort, Shapovalov fired nine aces while committing 16 double faults. The 25-year-old from Richmond Hill, Ont., finished the match with 58 unforced errors, compared to 28 from Altmaier.

Shapovalov will next play 14th seed Ben Shelton of the United States. It will be the first meeting between the players.

After Shapovalov won the first two sets to take control of the match, Altmaier responded with a dominant third set that saw him win the last five games.

An early break and a hold to start the fourth set increased the German's winning streak to seven games. Shapovalov got the break back in the eighth game as the set went to a tiebreak, which Altmaier claimed with back-to-back forehand winners.

Shapovalov responded in the decisive fifth set by converting an early break to go up 2-0 and then holding serve for the win. He put the match away with a pair of winners, giving him a total of 51.

Shapovalov is making his seventh appearance at the All England Club. His best showing to date being a run to the semifinals before losing to eventual champion Novak Djokovic in 2021. He made it to the Round of 16 last year.

A deep run at Wimbledon could turn around what has been a disappointing season for Shapovalov, a former world No. 10. He entered Wimbledon ranked 121st in the world, and even with his two wins at the All England Club he has a losing record on the year at 12-15.

With the need to pick up ranking points, he decided to take himself out of consideration for Canada's Olympic tennis team. He has committed to play at the Citi Open in Washington D.C., July 27 to Aug. 4, which is the same time as the Olympic tennis tournament.

Later Thursday, Leylah Fernandez, of Laval, Que., was set to face former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark in a women's second-round match.

Fernandez, 21, has never made it past the second round at Wimbledon.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 4, 2024.