Shapovalov Soars Into Seoul Final

Denis Shapovalov is an ATP Tour finalist once again.

The Canadian produced a relentless display on Saturday to overcome American Jenson Brooksby 7-5, 6-4 at the Eugene Korea Open Tennis Championships in Seoul.

In an aggressive performance, the fourth seed opened his shoulders to hit through Brooksby, firing 24 winners during the one-hour, 35-minute clash to reach his fifth tour-level final and first since Stockholm last November.

“I am very happy with my performance today,” Shapovalov said. “Jenson is a super tricky opponent and I am just happy to win today and be in the finals.”

Shapovalov rallied from a break down in the first set against the 21-year-old Brooksby and has yet to drop a set at the ATP 250 hard-court event. The fourth seed will look to continue that record and capture his second tour-level title when he plays Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka in the championship match.

The 23-year-old, who is up two spots to No. 22 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, lifted his only previous tour-level trophy in Stockholm in 2019. Earlier this season, Shapovalov advanced to the quarter-finals at the Australian Open and enjoyed a run to the last four in Dubai.

Brooksby was aiming to reach his third tour-level final of the season, having advanced to championship matches in Dallas and Atlanta.

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Nishioka edged American lucky loser Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 to reach his second tour-level final of the season.

The 27-year-old, who enjoyed a run to the championship match in Washington in August, committed just five unforced errors as he outlasted Kovacevic to advance after one hour and 54 minutes. Nishioka is up 11 spots to No. 45 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings and will be aiming to win his second tour-level title in Sunday’s final. The Japanese star triumphed in Shenzhen in 2018.