No Shortcuts– From Qualifiers to the Main Draw: Martin Damm Jr.’s Next Step Arrives in Washington D.C.
Here's what's trending across the USA right now:
At 22 years old, American Martin Damm Jr. is becoming one of the tour’s emerging talents. At the Mubadala DC Open, Damm played his way into the main draw, winning two qualifying matches. Damm first defeated Belgium’s Kimmer Coppejans in an easy 6-2, 6-0 match and then topped Jordanian Abdellah Shelbayh in a tightly contested three-set match. Damm shows us once again that he has the skills to get himself into the main draw and compete at the next level.
Adding to this, Washington isn’t just one stop on the 2026 calendar. It’s one that can set the stage for the summer. The DC Open begins the North American hard-court season before ATP Masters 1000 events in Canada and Cincinnati, culminating in the coveted US Open. With a notable reduction in the men’s draw this year–going from 48 to 32 players this year–getting into the main draw at this ATP 500 event is a big feat in itself.
Meanwhile, Damm’s second qualifying match against Shelbayh proved to be a battle of consistency. After losing the first set 4-6, Damm channeled his strong left-handed serve and focused on extending rallies under pressure. In the end, he won the second set 7-5 and won the deciding match tiebreak based on his composure. During the tiebreak, after Damm snagged a point to make it 3-2, Shelbayh double faulted, generating a significant momentum shift. The Washington crowd took to Damm’s side, showing Damm what it’s like to be an American playing in the nation’s capital.
Notably, “I think it’s 50-50 in tiebreaks,” Damm shared. “Sometimes you just lose your way…I thought I served well. Fortunately I had some good return points, and I was glad I was able to win it on the return and didn’t have to serve it out.”
As per the latest buzz, Damm’s 2026 season so far has been one of promise and opportunity. Just this February, Damm advanced to his first ATP semifinal at the ATP 250 event in Montpellier, France. Damm, once again, worked his way through qualifying and then delivered an impressive upset against former World No. 6 Hubert Hurkacz.
In further updates, Damm is one of a few men’s players at the DC Open with a decorated tennis parent–it’s not just Ben Shelton and Cruz Hewitt. Martin Damm (senior) became one of the world’s top doubles specialists, peaking professionally in the early 2000s, when he won the US Open men’s doubles title with Leander Paes. The Czech accumulated 40 ATP titles, ultimately reaching a career-high in doubles at No. 5 in the world in 2007. Before realizing his full potential in doubles, Martin Damm rose through the ranks in singles, reaching a career high of No. 42 in 1997. Damm ultimately retired in 2011.
On top of that, Damm Jr. exhibited a promising junior career before entering the pro circuit. As a junior in 2021, he reached a career-high ITF junior ranking at No. 3. At 15, he beat a young Alcaraz in the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon boys’ singles event, before a tough loss in the semifinals. Known in junior tennis for his lefty game and wicked serve mixed with a strike-first, power-heavy game, Damm aims to take that aggression and firepower to the professional tour.
For Damm, qualifying for the main draw is only the beginning. He knows the competition field is strong, so he hopes to use every chance he can to adapt to the ATP main draw level. This year at Wimbledon, Damm made it to the second round, so his goal remains set not on a specific result, but on learning how to adapt.
Source: World Tennis Magazine