INTERNAZIONALI BNL D'ITALIA

May 13, 2021

Denis Shapovalov

Press Conference

R. NADAL/D. Shapovalov

3-6, 6-4, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Take us through that. What was the difference in the end?

DENIS SHAPOVALOV: One or two points.

Q. Did you feel like you could put him away there when you had those match points?

DENIS SHAPOVALOV: Obviously.

Q. What is it about Rafa with these long, grueling three-setters, even best-of-five matches on clay? You feel as the match wears on he gets tougher and tougher to beat?

DENIS SHAPOVALOV: Yeah, I mean, that's why he's won so many matches on clay. I mean, obviously he's a great player. There's no question about that. Just a tough one.

Q. Yesterday Sinner said he was not going to sleep after his loss to Rafael Nadal. He had many less opportunities than you had. No match point, he lost in two sets, so on. Are you going to sleep tonight do you think and the next week or will you be thinking to this match a lot, also maybe in a positive way?

DENIS SHAPOVALOV: No, I'm going to sleep fine. No issues sleeping.

Of course, there's a lot of positives. In the end I lost, so that's it. As far as this week, it's much better level-wise than the previous weeks. That's how athletes are. If you lose, you lose. It's not very positive. But, yeah, I'll sleep fine.

Q. Out of many opportunities, the two match points, one backhand, one ball hit with the frame, where do you think it's the most painful mistake, error, that you made? On the match points or even before when you had the chance to go 4-Love?

DENIS SHAPOVALOV: I mean, I don't know. Every point I lose is painful. That's a pretty interesting question. I mean, probably losing the match is the most painful.

Q. I noticed this was the first time since the ATP Cup that you played somebody that on paper you weren't expected to beat. Did you feel differently about that? Is it one of the reasons you overall played so freely and well?

DENIS SHAPOVALOV: Yeah, of course. These matches, you have nothing to lose. In tennis, I don't know, we're lucky. In the UFC, you have like one chance to fight the top guy. In tennis you have a lot of chances.

Of course, in this kind of sense it's great to have these opportunities. You go out, play with nothing to lose. Who is going to give me crap for losing to Rafa? Of course, it helps to play freely.

I also think I have the game, I have what it takes to beat these guys. It's not a surprise to me. It's just a tough loss. Of course, it's not the first time Rafa's done this. I'm not the first person to lose with match points. For sure he does well with the pressure in those moments.

Just something I have to take back and just make a couple changes. But I'm definitely happy with where my game's at, relatively speaking, against the greatest player on this surface.