Shapovalov soars to first final since 2022 in Belgrade

Denis Shapovalov continued his dominant Belgrade Open run on Friday to advance to his first ATP Tour final since his Vienna runner-up finish in October 2022. The Canadian qualifier eased to a 6-2, 6-1 victory against fourth seed Jiri Lehecka to advance to his seventh tour-level final and his fifth on indoor hard courts.

The 25-year-old has lost just one set and one break point in his four main-draw victories this week. With an aggressive game plan in the semi-finals, he did not allow Lehecka a break chance, winning 96 per cent (25/26) of his first-serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

"Against a guy like Jiri, if you don't go after him, he's going to dictate the court," Shapovalov said after spoiling the Czech's 23rd birthday. "So for sure I was trying to play my game, play aggressive, really take it to him from the beginning."

Up 17 places to No. 61 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings this week, Shapovalov will move to the brink of the Top 50 if he can beat home favourite Hamad Medjedovic in their first Lexus ATP Head2Head matchup in Saturday's final. The Canadian will be playing for his second ATP Tour title (Stockholm 2019).

... and then there were ✌️#BelgradeOpen pic.twitter.com/mrTjBAWLEW

Medjedovic advanced to his first tour-level final by coming through an all-Serbian battle against Laslo Djere, 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(2). The Belgrade wild card won the title at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF last year and is seeking to once again close his season with a trophy.

The 21-year-old is the third-youngest Serbian to reach his first ATP Tour final after Novak Djokovic (Amersfoort 2006) and Miomir Kecmanovic (Antalya 2019) both played their first finals at 19.

While Medjedovic will enjoy the backing of his home crowd in Saturday's championship match, Shapovalov has also felt plenty of support from the Serbian fans this week.

"I didn't know I had so many Serbian fans," the Canadian said. "I think it's because I lose to Novak every time, so maybe they like me!"

[NEWSLETTER FORM]