ROME — Canada’s Denis Shapovalov was ousted in the first round of the Italian Open on Wednesday, falling 6-7 (4), 6-3, 7-6 (4) to Luciano Darderi of Italy.

The 25-year-old from Richmond Hill, Ont., struggled with his service game, committing 14 double faults and landing just 55 per cent of his first serves. Darderi capitalized on six break points compared to Shapovalov’s four.

Darderi next meets Mariano Navone of Argentina on Friday.

Shapovalov, ranked 126th in the world, holds a 6-11 record this season.

Fellow Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime, seeded 18th in Rome, received a first-round bye and is set to hit the clay court on Friday against the winner of Thursday’s match between Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands and American Nicolas Moreno De Alboran.

Auger-Aliassime enters the tournament fresh from a finals appearance at last week’s Madrid Open

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 8, 2024.