TORONTO – When Denis Shapovalov broke his opponent's serve for the second time in the second set Tuesday night, the Canadian yelled and jumped into the air as the family crowd roared, then Shapovalov lifted his hand to his ear, asking for more.
Fans delivered. But, like Shapovalov tried, he couldn't do it.
In the Sobeys Stadium Center court, the 26-year-old from nearby Richmond Hill lost 7-6 (4), 7-5 in Rogers’ decision to Tien, 19-year-old American learner at the National Bank Open, Shapovalov said it created a lower ranking opponent, saying “maybe it totally spirit” because he failed to make the most of his advantage at a critical moment in the game.
“I wasn't beaten – I'm lost today,” said a straight-faced Shapovalov. “I played. I had the first set, I had the second set, and there was only a little bit of nerve, yes, yes, just not going.”
“Of course it's sucking,” Shapovalov added.
So Shapovalov ranked 29th in the world, finished a game in his home tournament and was removed from the 61st-ranked U.S. United States. Shapovalov hasn't won the race at his National Open in six years. However, he didn't know: “I won't follow,” he said.
For crowd favorites, it looks really nice to get back into the winner circle in the NBO’s winner circle on Tuesday. Shapovalov won an early break in the opening match, punched the fist before firing three A's in his next service match. But any motivation he gained was short-lived.
In the first set, learners rose 4-2, when the crowd cheered “Let's go Shapo!” (clap, clap, clap, clap, clap, clap). The Canadian couldn't get back to win the game, even though he threw himself on the court, made a huge reward at the last point, and then finally got the ball over.
“I felt good after the first set because I felt like this set should be mine, I was just a mess to serve the scene,” Shapovalov said.
He was fired from Tuesday: fist-pulling, yelling “Yes!” and “Come on!” when he won the big score. But the lefty said he never really felt “comfortable” on the court, noting that, as he said, the vast stadium felt “very comfortable”. “I think my feet have not adjusted well to the ball today.”
In the ATP 250 event, Shapovalov won four straight wins in Los Cabos, Mexico, where he played four straight wins, and he didn't lose a single match in his second title of the season.
The former World No. 10 and Wimbledon semifinals in 2021 have been on a long road, missing half of the 2023 season due to a knee injury. When he returned in January 2024, Shapovalov's world ranking fell to 137th.
Shapovalov's loss is part of a disappointing day for Canadians on the hard ground. On a Montreal morning, 2019 NBO champion Bianca Andreescu withdraws an ankle injury she suffered in the opener. Then in the afternoon, Leylah Fernandez's biggest champion of his career in Washington – but still tired from the victory – was frustrated in her afternoon game.
Shapovalov was outstanding in the 2017 National Championships when he brought world No. 2 Rafael Nadal to the semifinals. His last NBO win was in 2019 when he beat Pierre-Hughes Hebert, World 40, and since then he has beaten here 0-5.
Shapowaf won an early break in the second set on Tuesday night, but his next service game gave up the break and ended with a double breakdown – he will register eight.
“I never felt like I was eliminated, or the game was slipping,” Shapovalov said. “It was a little unfortunate. There were so many mistakes today.”
When he made the last mistake of the night, exuding a backhand width, Shapovalov took off his white hat and walked online to shake hands. Then he walked out of the court and evaporated a small wave at the crowd. His eighth appearance in the NBO lasted an hour and 35 minutes.
“I didn't feel like I was going to lose this game until maybe the end,” he said.