 "Denis Shapovalov's frustration boils over, smashes racket in fiery outburst before giving it to fan")
Tennis fans were left in disbelief during the Rome Masters after Canadian star Denis Shapovalov showed signs of frustration during his stunning straight-sets defeat to Lithuanian underdog Vilius Gaubas. The match ended 6-3, 6-4 in Gaubas’ favour, who is ranked 154th in the world, while Shapovalov sits at No. 27.
Shapovalov’s fiery outburst
Shapovalov looked out of rhythm right from the start. His frustration grew as the match went on, especially in the second set, where Gaubas kept up the pressure. After losing the final point, Shapovalov let out his anger by smashing his racket on the court. He then surprised fans by handing the broken racket to someone in the crowd.
Denis Shapovalov's Epic Racket Smash pic.twitter.com/pDJtH9WWVP
— M Sports (@MSports_all) May 9, 2025
Shapovalov made 44 unforced errors and hit nine double faults. Even though he had several break point chances, he could only convert one. On the other hand, Gaubas stayed calm and consistent, breaking Shapovalov’s serve three times and taking full advantage of the Canadian’s mistakes.
This is not the first time Shapovalov broke his racket in anger. During the French Open last year, the Canadian star shocked everyone when he smashed his racket over his own head, not once, but twice. The incident happened during a frustrating match against Hubert Hurkacz.
After Shapovalov missed two easy chances at the net and failed to break serve at a crucial moment, he smashed the racket on his head. The dramatic and painful outburst left fans stunned.
Meanwhile, the result in the Rome Masters is a major milestone for Gaubas, who is slowly making a name for himself in the tennis world. Gaubas advanced to the third round of the Rome Masters ATP 1000 event, where he is set to face the second seed Alexander Zverev in a Round of 32 match on Sunday.
Shapovalov, on the other hand, will now have to regroup and find answers after yet another disappointing result. He was knocked out in the second round at the Madrid Open last month.
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