Canadian Tennis Star Shapovalov Suffers Unexpected Defeat at Italian Open
In a surprising turn of events, Canadian tennis star Denis Shapovalov was defeated in the first round of the prestigious Italian Open on Wednesday. The 25-year-old from Richmond Hill, Ont., faced off against Italy’s Luciano Darderi, ultimately falling short with a final score of 6-7 (4), 6-3, 7-6 (4).
Shapovalov, ranked 126th in the world, struggled with his serve throughout the match, committing a total of 14 double faults and landing only 55% of his first serves. Darderi capitalized on this, breaking Shapovalov’s serve six times, compared to Shapovalov’s four.
“The Italian player, Darderi, will now move on to face Mariano Navone of Argentina in the next round on Friday.”
Meanwhile, fellow Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime, seeded 18th in the Rome tournament, received a first-round bye and is set to take on the winner of Thursday’s match between Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands and American Nicolas Moreno De Alboran.
Auger-Aliassime enters the Italian Open fresh from a finals appearance at last week’s prestigious Madrid Open, which showcased his impressive form on the clay courts.
As the tennis world turns its attention to the clay-court season, this early upset of Shapovalov in Rome serves as a reminder of the unpredictability and competitive nature of the sport.
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