#NextGenATP German is first player born in 2008 or later to win ATP Tour match

A whirlwind 72 hours ended with a moment of history for Diego Dedura on Tuesday at the BMW Open by Bitpanda.

After being added to the main draw as a lucky loser following Gael Monfils’ withdrawal, the 17-year-old stepped on court against Denis Shapovalov at the clay-court ATP 500 in Munich to become the first player born in 2008 or later to compete in an ATP Tour match.

Sixty-four minutes later, and Dedura was celebrating his first tour-level win. The #NextGenATP German led eighth seed Shapovalov 7-6(2), 3-0 when the Canadian was forced to retire.

“I just can’t put it in words right now. I’m just so happy,” said Dedura. “I was struggling all these years and now I just got the wild card for qualifying. I won against Top 100 Mackenzie McDonald [on Saturday], then lost against [Alexander] Bublik [on Sunday]. I had bad luck because there were three lucky losers who got in, and I was the fourth one.

“So I was waiting the whole day on Monday and then [Gael] Monfils pulled out. He hugged me and was so nice. I just went in and told myself to, 'Just have fun, go with the crowd and just play your best tennis'. I can’t put it in words. I’m just so happy right now.”

Dedura saved both break points he faced in the second set against Shapovalov, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Those came after he had produced a rock-solid tie-break to clinch the opening set, during which he showed few signs of nerves.

“On the outside you are calm and everything, but it’s a storm inside,” said Dedura, who will face Zizou Bergs, a 6-7(5), 6-4, 7-5 winner against Bublik, in the second round. “You go over it in your mind. What happens if you win? With the crowd and everything, what will happen around you? Then I was just focused all the time and tried to hold my serve in the first set.

“Then in the tie-break he got a bit tight. I got the first point and saw he was a bit tight with the forehand. I tried to just put the ball in and move him and just fight for every point. At the end, I was just super happy.”

Another 17-year-old German talent, Justin Engel, was unable to join Dedura in the second round. Fabian Marozsan proved too strong for the home hope, with the No. 77 in the PIF ATP Rankings earning a 6-4, 6-1 first-round triumph. Marozsan will play fourth seed Ugo Humbert next, after the Frenchman downed Nicolas Jarry 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.