Court Theory readers with sharp memories might remember when I first started hyping an up-and-coming player by the name of Gabriel Diallo, a 6’8” Canadian with a slim frame and easy power off both wings, who could also come to the net with the comfort of a player from the 1980s. 

That was more than two years ago. Since then, some of you have asked if Diallo was for real, given how undisciplined he seemed at times. To me, that was part of a learning process about what was appropriate at key moments in a match as he continued — and continues — to level up at a rapid pace from college tennis just two years ago. 

But, for others who didn’t see the same star in the making, perhaps some will be persuaded now that Diallo has won his first tour-level title. On Sunday in s’Hertogenbosch, he took out three seeds (Thompson, Khachanov, and Humbert) on his way to defeating Zizou Bergs in the final. “This is the kind of moment you dream about as a kid, winning an ATP title,” Diallo said after the match. “To finally do it, especially after losing in the final last year, means the world to me.”

Later, when Diallo was asked to name a specific experience that helped him the most in winning his first title, he said there was no single moment. Instead, it was a string of progressively difficult “firsts” that helped him level up in the Netherlands. For Diallo, without acknowledging and appreciating the previous accomplishment, the next one wouldn’t be possible. 

“All the big things that I did, or I thought at the time were pretty huge: Winning U18 nationals in Canada, making the NCAA finals in college, winning my first Future, my first Challenger. All those moments, even though they’re not the same, to you it means the exact same,” he said. “The more you expose yourself to those, you can deal and manage those in the future, and this is another great achievement.”

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