Nadal knocked out of Italian Open by Shapovalov in last-16
Rafael Nadal was knocked out of the Italian Open after the 21-times major winner was beaten 1-6, 7-5, 6-2 by Canadian Denis Shapovalov in the last16 of the Italian Open on Thursday.
Nadal had a solid start, but the 35-year-old struggled physically towards the end of the contest, raising doubts over his fitness ahead of the French Open, which he has won a record 13 times.
The Spaniard, who has endured a string of injuries during a career spanning more than two decades, dominated the opening set with his brilliant return of serves.
Canadian Shapovalov responded in style by racing to a 4-1 lead in the second set with his energetic and attacking play, but Nadal got back into the contest by winning the next three games. Nadal saved a set point at 4-5 but a series of unforced errors and lack of aggression from him saw the match go into the deciding third set.
World number four Nadal broke through right away at the start of the decider but later limped with an apparent foot injury, likely related to his chronic left-foot problem.
Shapovalov went won 17 of the last 20 points, completing his comeback as he handed Nadal his earliest Rome exit since 2008.
Earlier, Novak Djokovic ended Stan Wawrinka’s hopes of stringing together a hat-trick of match wins for the first time in 18 months with a 6-2, 6-2 thumping.