Shapovalov disappointed in performance against Harris - "I beat myself"

After reaching the quarterfinals last year, Denis Shapovalov failed to replicate his performance as he was bundled out by South African Lloyd Harris in the third round of the 2021 US Open.

The seventh seed lost in straight sets to the unseeded Harris, as his game was marred by numerous unforced errors and inconsistent play.

“I was my own opponent today,” Shapovalov told TSN following the loss. “I was struggling a lot with the serve and really I beat myself. I mean the match obviously shows that.

“I was up. Had a lot of chance in the first set, up in the second and third, and I broke myself. So, it’s super frustrating, but it is what it is. [I’ve] just got to continue to work and try to get better.”

Although Harris was solid throughout the entire match, Shapovalov wasted chances where he was a break up in the second and third sets, but failed to capitalize on either opportunity.

“In terms of fighting, I think I did a great job of bouncing back after the first set, bouncing back after the second set,” Shapovalov conceded. “But when the serve’s going on like that it’s very difficult to compete against a guy like Lloyd Harris where you know you’re not gonna have a lot of break opportunities.

“You gotta win your service games and focus on that. It sucks, but like I said I just need to continue to work and get better.”