Denis Shapovalov has been playing with house money up until this week. The 19-year-old Canadian has moved only one way up the rankings since making a huge splash last year right after turning pro.

As a wildcard entry ranked No. 143, he blasted his way to the Rogers Cup semifinals with wins over Juan Martin del Potro and Rafael Nadal.

"It's one of those moments that I'm never going to forget," Shapovalov said in Washington. "It pretty much jumpstarted my career. It's the reason why I feel like I'm here today."

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That run gave him a whopping 360 points, the most he'd ever collected. While he's made a few deep runs since, this week is the first time he will face a realistic prospect of slipping down from his current spot at No. 26.

"Points are going to come and go. I'm only 19 years old, so for me the most important thing is just to keep getting my game better and keep improving," he said. "If my game is there, the points will come. I'm not too concerned with those points. I've already made the semis of another Masters [Madrid] so I have those points secured even if I go down first round in the Rogers Cup."

He's got a chunk of points coming up from his US Open run, where he reached the fourth round as a qualifier with wins over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Kyle Edmund. Clearly though, Shapovalov has his mind set right on working on his game instead of freaking out over the numbers.

"My game as a whole has improved. I'm way more solid in every aspect," he said. "I'm way better physically and especially mentally. So hopefully I can going in that direction."

A fellow youth on tour, Alexander Zverev, has been around the block a few time already. At 21 years old, Zverev is ranked No. 3 with nine career titles to his name.

"We’ll see in the next few weeks how strong he is mentally and how much he can handle the pressure," the Washington champion said about Shapovalov. "Going into the Masters 1000 events where you have a semifinal to defend is not something he’s done before. Us young guys, we have to go through a lot of first times. I’ve been through that stage a little bit already and it’s going to be interesting to see how he deals with it."

Shapovalov is one of five Canadian men in the main draw at the Rogers Cup. Only Shapovalov and Raonic didn't need a wildcard to compete, with Shapovalov the No. 1-ranked Canadian by three spots. He opens against Jeremy Chardy on Tuesday.

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Shapovalov's mind
in the right place
for points defense

Shapovalov's mind in the right place for points defense

ATP Toronto

Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev headline the Rogers Cup in Toronto. Watch live coverage from four courts on Tennis Channel Plus beginning Monday, August 6th at 11:00 A.M.