Around ten years ago, a certain Alexander Zverev caused a real bang in German tennis. At just 16 years old, the then number 665 in the world rankings sensationally won the Challenger tournament in Braunschweig. The start of a great career that raises great hopes given the current ideas of a German youngster: Diego Dedura-Palomero.
After more than 2:30 hours the next surprise was in the bag! The 16-year-old DTB talent Diego Dedura-Palomero defeated the Brazilian Daniel Dutra Da Silva (number 393 in the world rankings) in three sets with 6:7, 7:5 and 6:2 in the first round of the Challenger event in Augsburg and recorded another win against a player who is actually in other spheres in the ATP rankings.
However, it has already become apparent in the last few weeks that the German outsider could ultimately be ahead. In his fifth professional tournament participation, Dedura-Palomero recently reached the quarter-finals in Bucharest (M15), beating top-seeded Ukrainian Eric Vanshelboim (number 357 in the world rankings) on the way there and narrowly failing in three sets in the round of the last eight Moroccan Elliot Benchetrit (number 784 in the world rankings).
The youngster is currently enhancing his surprising victories at the lowest professional tournament level at the Schwaben Open in Augsburg. Equipped with a wildcard, Dedura-Palomero defeated the Czech Martin Krumich (number 369 in the world rankings) 7:6 and 7:6 in the first round of qualifying and then left DTB colleague Adrian Oetzbach (number 521 in the world rankings) no chance.
The fact that Dedura-Palomero was able to win a real fight against Dutra Da Silva in the main draw gives an idea of where the road could lead. Successes that are more than just a small hint, considering that as number 1587 in the world rankings he is ranked more than 1000 places lower than the vast majority of his opponents in Augsburg.
The fact that the German Tennis Association has a real gem in its ranks in Dedura-Palomero shouldn’t surprise anyone at the association. After all, the Berliner was named Europe’s Player of the Year in the U14 category in 2022, a title that also adorns the vita of superstars such as Kim Clijsters, Marin Cilic, Justine Henin, Martina Hings, Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic. However, performances like the ones currently in Augsburg underline that Dedura-Palomero can also keep up at the professional level.
German tennis talent “always wants to win”
One reason for the left-hander’s rise is certainly a significant increase in his own service, which Dedura-Palomero listed as one of the weaknesses that he was working diligently on in an interview with the DTB in October 2023. With success, it seems: In Augsburg, the German has scored a higher percentage of points on his own serve than his opponents in all three matches so far and has hardly recorded any double faults.
If he can maintain his current form, the top talent, whose 18-year-old brother Mariano is also one of the best German young players, should not have a chance in the round of 16 either. Waiting here on Wednesday is the 30-year-old Italian Riccardo Bonadio (number 378 in the world rankings), who is of course the favorite in the race, but was not always able to shine in 2024.
Dedura-Palomero will at least not stick his head in the red ashes in Augsburg before the game starts. “I always want to win,” he said in an interview with the association, leaving no doubt that he is not afraid of any hurdles.
Marc Affeldt
2024-05-22 07:47:00
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