Dedura-Palomero announces himself by making ATP Tour history

Germany’s Diego Dedura-Palomero has made history by becoming the first player born in 2008 or later to compete – and win – on the ATP Tour.

The 17-year-old, who is ranked No. 549 in the ATP Rankings, defeated Denis Shapovalov of Canada in the opening round of the BMW Open – an ATP 500 event – in Munch. Shapovalov was forced to retire while trailing 7-6(2) 3-0.

“I just can’t put it into words right now,” said Dedura-Palomero.

“On the outside you are calm, but it’s a storm inside. You go over it in your mind: what happens if I win? What will happen around me? 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.”

Dedura-Palomero is another product of the ITF player pathway having featured on the ITF World Tennis Tour – the main artery to the ATP Tour – at both junior and professional levels in recent years.

He also represented Germany at the ITF World Junior Tennis Finals – the premier international team competition for players aged 14 and under – and twice at the Davis Cup Junior Finals – the equivalent event for players aged 16 and under.

Dedura-Palomero represented Germany at the 2024 Davis Cup Junior Finals in November. He has come a long way in a short time.