Numerous figures in the tennis world have jumped to the defence of Denis Shapovalov after he was defaulted in his Davis Cup match against Kyle Edmund.
The 17-year-old was playing in Canada’s decisive match against Great Britain. Trailing the match by two sets, Shapovalov lost his temper and accidentally smashed the ball towards the umpire’s face, hitting him in the left eye. As a consequence, the Canadian was disqualified with the score at 6-3, 6-4, 2-1, rewarding Britain a place in the quarter-finals of the tournament.
Should anyone want higher quality video… pic.twitter.com/0z7EXK9Yts
— Peter Pan (@i_am_peterpan_) 5 February 2017
Following the incident, the current Wimbledon Boys’ champion issued a statement of apology during his press conference. The emotional teenager expressed regret concerning his actions and vowed to never to do it again.
“Obviously this is unacceptable behaviour from me,” Shapovalov said. “I just feel awful for letting my team down, for letting my country down, for acting a way that I would never want to act.
“I can promise that’s the last time I will do anything like that.”
Canadian team captain Martin Laurendeau has voiced his support for the youngster following his disqualification, labelling the situation as a ‘big lesson’ for the rising star. Laurendeau was hired as Shapovalov’s coach during the off-season after the departure of Adriano Fuorivia.
“He’s not that kind of guy. It’s just the beginning of his career so he’ll draw a big lesson out of this,” Laurendeau said. “Curbing your emotions on the court is probably something that he’ll need to make a living out of this sport. You can’t compete if you don’t have emotional control and this lesson can serve him for the rest of his career and the rest of his life.”
Fellow countrymen Vasek Pospisil and Félix Auger Aliassime has also backed the 17-year-old. Pospisil praised his team mate on social media, insisting that he is one of the nicest people on the tour. Meanwhile Aliassime, who is the current US Open boys’ champion, urged Shapovlov to not let the situation ‘put him down’.
Accidents happen to everyone, all we have to do is learn from them.@denis_shapo don't let this put you down, you're a great person
— Félix AugerAliassime (@felixtennis) February 5, 2017
No one is nicer or carries themselves better for a 17 y/o than Shapovalov. Everyone can see that today was an accident. Can happen to anyone
— Vasek Pospisil (@VasekPospisil) February 5, 2017
Shapovalov is currently at a career high of 234th in the world and is also ranked inside the top 10 on the junior tour. So far in his professional career, he has won three Futures titles. Last year he stunned Nick Kyrgios in the first round of the Rogers Cup to claim the most high profile win in his career to date.
