When Denis Shapovalov and Adrian Mannarino first met in August at the Rogers Cup, the 18-year-old Shapovalov was in the middle of an incredible stretch of tennis that catapulted him up the ATP Rankings, and into instant stardom.
But in the past six weeks, the magic Shapovalov produced over the summer has been amiss, and on Thursday, Shapovalov had his latest misstep in a loss to Mannarino in the Round of 16 at the ATP Swiss Indoors (6-4, 1-6, 2-6).
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Neither player has able to produce a break in the first set, with Shapovalov saving two break points when trailing 2-1, producing a crucial hold. After Shapovalov again took a game and grabbed a 5-4 edge, he finally managed to work the set's first hold, taking it in the process, 6-4.
In the second set though, perhaps having exhausted energy in the opening portion of the match, Shapovalov struggled to find any rhythm. He was broken twice early, each time consolidated by Mannarino, falling behind 4-0. Shapovalov finally took a game to draw within 4-1, but that was as close as he would get, falling 6-1 to bring the match even at 1-1.
The third set played much closer, with each player again taking advantage of their service opportunities, before Mannarino produced a break to go ahead 3-2. Mannarino grabbed the momentum from there, winning the following three games to close out the third set and the match.
Shapovalov will next be in action in Milan in November at the Next Gen ATP Finals.