Monte-Carlo Masters 2019: Shapovalov Crashes Out, Nadal to face Bautista Agut

Monday, 15 April 2019, 1:55 pm Zubin Daver

Denis Shapovalov v Radu Albot predictions and tips — Photo Credit: Carine06 from UK

Things didn’t go as expected for Denis Shapovalov as he went down in the first round of the 2019 Monte-Carlo Masters on his birthday.

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In a match that saw the Canadian serve 10 double-faults in the match, he went down to Jan-Lennard Struff in three sets, losing 7-5, 3-6, 1-6. What looked to be a good start for Shapovalov quickly turned out to be a damp squib as he lost control over his serves and backhand and went down in a hurry in the next two.

What this means is that Struff will now take on Grigor Dimitrov in the second round, who defeated Matteo Berrettini, 7-5, 6-4. Interestingly, Struff has made it to the third round on each of his previous campaigns at the Monte-Carlo Masters while Dimitrov was a semi-finalist last year.

Also in action was Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut who needed three sets to defeat Australia’s John Millman 3-6, 6-1, 6-1. He will now face the monumental task of playing Rafael Nadal in his second round, and will hope to take confidence from his wins against Novak Djokovic this season.

About Zubin Daver 145 Articles

Zubin, a content head of a digital agency, is an avid sports fan who spends most of his days following sports. He is addicted to LFC so much so, people around him have begun hunting for Football Anonymous Groups for him to join. He's been covering sports like Tennis, Cricket and Football since 2010 with the aim of converting his passion into his livelihood. He took to tennis because of Roger Federer and is unsure of post-retirement plans. Federer's that is.