Dennis Shapovalova express unhappiness, to protests default fine

Dennis Shapovalov have expressed his dissatisfaction whilst pledging to protest the new punishment against decision to default him during his Citi Open quarter-final clash with Ben Shelton by the ATP.

After three unforced errors in a row, an enraged Shapovalov slammed his racket to the ground, palmed it, and kicked it. After allegedly using a profanity to insult one of the spectators, he complained to the umpire about being permitted to “tell off” the guest.

The 25-year-old was first given a code infraction, but the supervisor—who had been called to court—later defaulted on him. The punishment that was originally intended to be the loss of his ranking points and prize money has now been reduced to a mere £28k fine.

“Dear fans, I would like to thank you for standing by my side through these last few days. As you can imagine, it’s been an extremely stressful time for me,” Shapovalov wrote on X.

“I continue to feel shocked and disappointed over the decision to disqualify me from my match against Ben in Washington. It was not fair to me, him or anyone that was there to watch the match.

“I of course immediately submitted my appeal to the ATP and I am pleased and thankful with the quick decision to reinstate my points and prize money. I must state however that I do not agree with the hefty fine I was given, which is more than half the prize money I earned last week, and will continue to fight that.

“We will work extremely hard – our tennis careers are our lives and should not be derailed by unnecessary, subjective ruling. I also hope the ATP can put better rules in place for protecting players from abusive fans.

“I’d also like to take this time to thank the players that have openly stood up for me in the press and on social media. As difficult as these last few days have been, I am excited to be back in Montreal in front of the Canadian fans. I hope I can continue building off my good week in Washington on home soil.

He has been defended by some of his colleagues on the ATP tour. However, Ben Shelton had little to say, commenting: “No, I mean, it is what it is. I think it was a tough situation all around. I don’t really have any other comments on that situation.”