Australian Open: Alexander Zverev out in fourth round after loss to Denis Shapovalov

Alexander Zverev has been knocked out of the Australian Open after a straight-sets 6-3 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 loss to Denis Shapovalov, while Rafael Nadal moves into his 14th quarter-final in Melbourne.

The third seed, who was a semi-finalist in Melbourne in 2020, struggled to find his game throughout the match and his errors were capitalised on by his Canadian opponent.

Shapovalov secured the match on his second match point and progresses into the quarter-finals of the Australian Open for the first time in his career.

The 22-year-old will now face 20-time Grand Slam winner Nadal, who overcame Adrian Mannarino earlier in the day on Sunday.

“I’m very happy with my performance and happy with where my game is at,” Shapovalov said after his victory. “I was really feeling my shots on both wings and I played smart tennis.”

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Denis Shapovalov’s victory was just his second against a top five player

Shapovalov had spent almost 11 hours on court to progress through the first three rounds at Melbourne Park, winning twice in four sets and once in five.

And he was slightly surprised by the relative speed of his two-hour and 21-minute victory over the third seed.

“It was probably the one I least expected to finish in three,” he said with a smile.

There is not much I can say or take away that was positive from today. Maybe since Wimbledon, it’s one of the worst matches I have played. It’s just tough. I’ve got to do better. I came here with a goal to win, and maybe to become No 1 and all that. But, if I play like that, I don’t deserve it. It’s as simple as that.

The 22-year-old hit 35 winners to Zverev’s 18 during the course of their contest. He was effective when coming into the net too, securing 22 of 27 points there and worked well behind his first serve.

Double faults were a feature of Shapovalov’s game, he delivered 11 in total and knows that facing Nadal in the quarter-finals will be a challenge.

Alexander Zverev vs Denis Shapovalov – Statistics

Alexander Zverev

Denis Shapovalov

3
Aces
3

8
Double faults
11

76%
First serve in
63%

69%
Points won on first serve
77%

29%
Points won on second serve
46%

2/5
Break points won
4/6

18
Winners
35

32
Unforced errors
37

88
Total points won
104

“It’s always an honour to go up against a guy like Rafa,” the Canadian said. “It’s going to be a tough one and I’m definitely going to enjoy it.”

Nadal made his way into the quarter-finals a victory over Mannarino, one that featured an “emotional” 28-minute tie-break in the opening set.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion was put under huge pressure by his French opponent but found his best tennis when he needed to in order to win the tie-break 14-12.

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Rafael Nadal showed his determination during his contest with Adrian Mannarino

“The first set was very, very emotional and anything could have happened in it,” he said. “I was lucky in the end and had my chances, he had a lot of chances too.

“Everybody knows how this game is about the mental side too and it’s a tough one. After the crazy first set I think it was so important to break at the beginning of the second,” Nadal added.

“He had been playing some fantastic tennis during the whole tournament against some fantastic players. In that first set his ball was very difficult to control, very flat and very fast. I’m very happy that I survived that first set.”

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It is Rafael Nadal’s 45th time reaching the last eight at a Grand Slam tournament

As Nadal highlighted, losing such a gruelling tie-break was tough for Mannarino to take. In contrast, the Spaniard embraced the momentum from it and took the second and third sets 6-2.

Victory from Nadal secures his place in the quarter-finals for a 14th time, only Roger Federer has reached that stage of the Australian Open more often.

Men’s Quarter-finals – Top half of the draw

Gael Monfils (17) vs Matteo Berrettini (7)

Denis Shapovalov (14) vs Rafael Nadal (6)

“Denis [Shapovalov] is a player with amazing potential, everybody knows that,” Nadal said about his next opponent. “When he’s playing very well it’s very difficult to stop him with his amazing serve, he’s forehand and he’s very quick.

“I’m happy to be in the quarter-finals and I know I need to play very, very well to keep having chances. I’m just enjoying today and I’m going to try my best.”

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Gael Monfils celebrating his victory over Miomir Kecmanovic

Gael Monfils‘ blistering start to the season continued as he eased past Miomir Kecmanovic 7-5 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 to reach his second Australian Open quarter-final.

The flamboyant Frenchman lit up the Margaret Court Arena with sparkling shot-making to reach the last eight at Melbourne Park for the first time since 2016.

“It was really tough, he played extremely fast on both sides,” Monfils said. “I tried to be very aggressive today, it was just battling, battling, hanging in there.”

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Matteo Berrettini was coming off the back of a marathon five-set win over Carlos Alcaraz

Monfils wrapped up the match with trademark panache, leaping high to thump a backhand winner and end Kecmanovic’s dream run. He is the only man yet to drop a set and will face Matteo Berrettini next.

Berrettini overcame Pablo Carreno Busta 7-5 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 in the final match of the day. The seventh seed landed 77 per cent of his first serves and produced 28 aces during the match.

The Italian, who had to withdraw from the 2021 Australian Open due to injury, has now reached the quarter-finals at all four majors.

“I really wanted to play but my team forced me [to withdraw last year] and then I understood that I couldn’t play with a tear in my ab,” he said.

“It was really tough but in a way it helped me. I believe everything that happens to you is for a reason. I wanted to come back as soon as possible. The way I won today shows just how much I care about this tournament.”

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