ATP Tournament in Mallorca, Round of 16, Wednesday, 22.06.2022
Wanted: The best possible form for Wimbledon! Several top stars are currently residing on Mallorca to get fit for the third Grand Slam tournament of the year. Not all of them are currently in the desired shape.
Denis Shapovalov is also one of those who arrived dissatisfied. The Canadian just doesn’t like to get into shape anymore.
When you think of Denis Shapovalov in connection with the green grass, Wimbledon 2021 inevitably comes to mind. The young Canadian showed himself at his very best and stormed through to the semi-finals.
Whether Andy Murray, Roberto Bautista Agut or Karen Khachanov, no one could stop him. He had to go home just before the final, but a 6-7, 5-7, 5-7 against the great Novak Djokovic earned great respect even from betting friends at the time.
These are times to which Shapovalov would like to return. At the moment, it doesn’t look as if he will be able to repeat his strong tournament in 2022. In Queens, he lost to Tommy Paul in the first round, and before that in Stuttgart he lost to Oscar Otte just as early.
Together with the tournaments in Paris and Genau, it has now happened four times that Shapovalov was not allowed to play a second match. Unimaginable for a player of his class, but the form is just not right at all.
Everyone knows about the bad boy: on good days he can really beat anyone, not for nothing did he already triumph over Rafael Nadal this year. But far too often everything goes wrong, Shapovalov seems erratic and unfocused.
The 23-year-old definitely doesn’t want to make a mess of his start in Mallorca on Wednesday, where he will meet Benjamin Bonzi for the first time ever. Although he is favoured by the ranked betting providers, caution is still advised.
1.50 to 2.50, the recent fluctuations are now naturally affecting the odds. Can Benjamin Bonzi really ensure that Denis Shapovalov is eliminated in the 1st round for a fifth time in a row?
He is ranked 56th in the world and, unlike Shapovalov, is right-handed. In his debut on Mallorca, his match was ended early in the opener, but wouldn’t he have won anyway?
He was leading 6-3, 4-2 against Alejandro Tabilo when the latter threw in the towel earlier than planned. In Halle, the Frenchman had been eliminated in the 1st round, but he still attracted attention with a close 6-7, 6-1, 3-6 against Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Who knows how far his path would have taken him in Stuttgart when he had to cancel his duel with Oscar Otte in the quarter-finals due to illness. Bonzi likes to play close matches, which often go into the decisive third set.
He showed last year in Wimbledon that he can be quite convincing on grass. He was defeated by Marin Cilic in four tight sets, so he should be able to do something against Denis Shapovalov as well.
My Bonzi Shapovalov Tip
A Denis Shapovalov in top form can beat any player in the world, but the problem in these weeks is: the Canadian is miles away from exactly that top form, he is threatening a fifth consecutive exit in the 1st round.
Benjamin Bonzi, on the other hand, is not in a bad mood; recently he almost beat Stefanos Tsitsipas. For this reason, I have a lot of confidence in him on Wednesday and am betting on him:
We see more than 22.5 games!
