Shapovalov pulls out of National Bank Open
Published
Canadian Denis Shapovalov is withdrawing from the National Bank Open in Toronto due to a knee injury, Tennis Canada confirmed on Tuesday.
Shapovalov, 24, most recently played at Wimbledon, where he reached the round of 16. His best performance at the National Bank Open came in 2017 when he reached the semi-finals as a wild card, beating No. 1 seed Rafael Nadal in a third-round match at IGA Stadium.
He was ousted from the men's draw last month at Wimbledon after suffering a fourth-round, four-set loss to Roman Safiullin of Russia. He struggled with a knee injury and laboured through the final three sets. A limp was noticeable as he walked off the court following the loss.
"I felt sore the whole time. But actually, yeah, I was getting more tired in the glutes and around the knee, the quads and everything, from the beginning of the match. It was getting worse and worse. I think as soon as other parts get tired, just have more and more impact on the knee," said Shapovalov after the match. "As the match went on, it just became unbearable."
Shapovalov added that the injury is years old, but it has been flaring up in recent months.
Tennis Canada also announced that Nick Kyrgios and Pablo Carreno Busta have confirmed their withdrawals from the National Bank Open. As a result, Emil Ruusuvuori, J.J. Wolf and Kei Nishikori gain automatic entry into the main draw.