Shapovalov Still Angry About Default In Washington And Calls It 'An Insult'

Saturday, 19 October 2024 at 01:40

byJordan Reynolds

It has been over two months since Denis Shapovalov was controversially defaulted from his 2024 Citi Open quarterfinal against Ben Shelton, and the Canadian remains unhappy about it.

Shapovalov had been building some momentum before his match against Shelton in Washington after enduring a challenging 2024 since returning from six months out with a knee injury.

The 25-year-old has had to manage high expectations since he burst onto the scene as a teenager, memorably beating Rafael Nadal in a thrilling battle on home soil at the Canadian Open, aged 18.

Shapovalov's most notable achievement since then was reaching the semifinals of Wimbledon in 2021. At that stage, he lost a competitive match to the eventual champion, Novak Djokovic, but it felt like better things were ahead for him.

However, Shapovalov struggled to find consistency in the next two years before a knee injury sustained at Wimbledon last year ruled him out for six months. He found it tough for months after returning.

Shapovalov finally found some form at the Citi Open, defeating Roberto Bautista Agut, Adrian Mannarino, and Miomir Kecmanovic to set up a meeting against the home favorite Shelton in the quarterfinal.

Although the Canadian competed well against Shelton, he was on the verge of defeat when three match points down at 3-6 in the second-set tie-break. The controversial incident that led to his default then followed.

A crowd member shouted something at Shapovalov after he lost the point to go 3-6 down, leading the former Wimbledon quarterfinalist to direct some words back in the spectator's direction instinctively.

The umpire, Greg Allensworth, called the ATP supervisor to the court, and it was determined that Shapovalov should be defaulted for what he said, leaving him shocked and angry in equal measure.

Shapovalov was allowed to keep his ranking points, and his fine for the incident was reduced, but he expressed bitterness about how the saga was handled in comments at the Ultimate Tennis Showdown in Frankfurt.

"It stayed in my head. I was very upset. Even though I got the 100 points back from the decision I lost all my price money. If you reduce the fine and the taxes they sent me a check for a $154. It was kind of an insult to me. The ATP didn’t admit they were wrong."

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"You have players that did way, way worse than what I have done and there were not big punishments. I was unlucky and I am still upset that they did not admit their mistake. At that moment I did not want to play tennis. But after Davis Cup it was better."

Shapovalov, who has also been critical of how Jannik Sinner's doping case was handled, admitted he struggles a bit physically since his knee injury but feels more experienced after going through that physical problem.

“I’m definitely in a different stage in my career. I have gone through a lot of things: A rise, a little bit of a fall, a serious injury. I’m getting more experienced."

"I definitely think that my game is there but I struggle a bit physically to sustain my top level day-in, day-out. That is why I had a lot of results where I beat top players but then the next day I didn’t play good and have been tired."