"We'll see if it's in the stars" - Denis Shapovalov cautiously optimistic ahead of Dallas Open final vs Casper Ruud

Denis Shapovalov issued a word of caution to Casper Ruud ahead of their highly anticipated 2025 Dallas Open final. The Canadian intends to give it his all to earn his first ATP 500 title.

In an interview with Tennis.com after winning his semifinal against Tommy Paul, Shapovalov acknowledged that winning an ATP 500 event would be a "big step" for him.

"I'm gonna leave it all out there. I haven't won a 500, so it'd be a big step for me as well. At the end of the day, the most important thing is to keep what I've been doing the whole week, which is to play my game, enjoy myself on the court, and try my best. We'll see if it's in the stars," Denis Shapovalov said.

This will be Shapovalov's eighth tour-level final. He won his first final which was an ATP 250 event in Stockholm in 2019. However, he lost a string of five finals in the next few years including a Masters 1000 in Paris. Most recently, the 25-year-old won an ATP 250 final in Serbia in November 2024 defeating Hamad Medjedovic.

Ruud, on the other hand, has played 23 tour-level finals. He holds a 12-11 record in championship matches winning his last two in Barcelona (ATP 500) and Geneva (ATP 250) in 2024.

---

Denis Shapovalov and Casper Ruud's road to the Dallas Open final

Denis Shapovalov at the ATP 500 Dallas Open 2025 - Source: Getty

Denis Shapovalov has pulled off an extraordinary run to the Dallas Open final defeating three of the top six seeds. In his first match, he got the better of Miomir Kecmanovic 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 before taking out top seed Taylor Fritz 2-6, 6-3, 7-6.

In the quarterfinals, the Canadian emphatically defeated sixth seed Tomas Machac 7-6, 6-0 followed by another strong performance in the semifinals to beat third seed Tommy Paul 7-5, 6-3.

Second seed Casper Ruud opened his campaign with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-2 win over James Duckworth followed by a 6-1, 6-4 over Michael Mmoh. He received a walkover in the quarterfinals against Yoshihito Nishioka after leading 7-5, 3-2 before winning 6-2, 2-6, 7-6(4) against Jaime Munar in the semifinals.

Ruud and Shapovalov have faced each other twice before on tour with the Norwegian winning both battles in straight sets. They played the final in Geneva in 2021 and the quarterfinals at the ATP 1000 event in Rome in 2022. They will take to the courts in Dallas for the final on Sunday, February 9.