Denis Shapovalov has retired from his first-round match at Wimbledon against Pablo Carreno Busta due to injury.
The Canadian was down 6-3, 7-6 (7) at the time he retired.
After dropping the first set, Shapovalov was much better in the second, using an aggressive serve to put his veteran opponent on his heels. However, down 8-7 in the second set tiebreak, the Canadian took an on-court medical timeout to deal with a shoulder injury. Once play resumed, Carreno Busta quickly clinched the set with a mini break, prompting Shapovalov’s retirement.
The 41st-ranked Canadian has now dropped seven of his past eight matches, with his lone win coming against Jack Pinnington-Jones in the first round at the Queen’s Club.
Carreno Busta, the ATP Tour’s 71st-ranked player, heads to the second round of Wimbledon for just the second time in his career and first time since 2019.
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The 34-year-old veteran Carreno Busta took control early, as Shapovalov was unable to convert any of his four break points in the opening game and then was broken quickly on his own first service game. Carreno Busta opened a 3-0 lead and would keep things on serve for the remainder of the set to take the first 6-3.
Shapovalov found his serve in the second set, as he drilled nine aces while conceding just five points across five service games to take a 5-4 lead. The Canadian’s aggressiveness on serve nearly cost him late in the set, as a double fault - his third of the set - and a pair of poor second serve attempts gave Carreno Busta three opportunities to complete a break to take control of the set. However, the hard-serving Canadian stayed on course and held again for a 6-5 lead. Carreno-Busta would quickly hold to force a second-set tiebreak before injury ended Shapovalov’s tournament early.
Three more Canadians are scheduled to be on court Monday: Bianca Andreescu, Félix Auger-Aliassime, and Leylah Annie Fernandez.
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Feature Photo: Martin Sidorjak
