Opinion | Denis Shapovalov was no match for Carlos Alcaraz at the ...

Everybody was keenly anticipating it. Few will remember it. Denis Shapovalov will want to forget it.

Thus went the Canadian’s third-round match at Roland Garros against top seed and world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz.

Which was to be expected, really. The two young men are separated by 31 spots in the world rankings and the swarthy Spaniard is overwhelmingly regarded as luminary heir apparent to the Big Three: Roger Federer (retired last year), Rafael Nadal (King of Clay, absent from the French Open he’s won 14 times with an abdominal injury) and Novak Djokovic (bidding for an unprecedented 23rd Grand Slam title).

Alcaraz and Djokovic are on track to meet in the semifinals at Stade Roland Garros. Shapovalov couldn’t put a shred of drag on that trajectory in his first career meeting with Alcaraz on Friday evening, crashing out in straight sets: 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in a mere two hours and 10 minutes.

“Definitely extremely tough today against Carlos,” Shapovalov admitted in an interview with TSN. “First of all, big credits to him. He’s playing some great tennis. He’s going to be extremely tough to beat in this tournament. He’s playing very, very confidently. I gave it all I had today.”

There were some positives for Shapovalov, the 24-year-old lefty from Richmond Hill and one-time No. 10. The knee injury that has bothered him for much of the season — he withdrew from two recent tournaments — appears no longer a hindrance to his full-throttle style of play. It was a career-best showing at this major. And Shapovalov said from the outset that he had “zero expectations” in Paris as he looks to recover the form that took him to the Wimbledon semifinal just two years ago.

In fact, before the match Shapovalov could barely contain his admiration for Alcaraz: “I’m a huge fan of his. He is not in any easy spot, being No. 1 and so young, with so much noise around him.”

There was a time when Shapovalov was the bright young thing in men’s tennis, certainly in the same hotshot conversation as Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev. Then Alcaraz came along and sucked up all the oxygen.

The 20-year-old — he took the U.S. Open as a teenager last September, the first major trophy of doubtless many more to come — is simply never rattled. Not that Shapovalov was much of a poise disrupter on Court Philippe-Chatrier for an opponent with the full package of pace, spin and depth on his shots, insanely fast footwork, brilliant ball control, a powerfully heavy forehand that he deploys to finish off points quickly, and a knack for disguising the ball’s direction. Alcaraz finds winners everywhere on the court.

What Shapovalov brings to every match is explosive shotmaking — he always risks everything, too often risks everything recklessly, endlessly going big, which has often meant going home — with strong groundstrokes and a punishing serve. Sturdily athletic, Shapovalov, seeded 26th, may have been feeling the after-effects of a tough opening round and the sheer effort required to contend with Alcaraz because the only time he had the Spaniard on the ropes, up 4-1 in the middle frame, he suddenly seemed to run out of gas. The Spaniard, who’d been pushed into making some unforced errors, then rose to the fleeting threat by winning seven straight games, stealing the set from under Shapovalov’s nose and opening a 2-0 advantage in the final set. His mental steeliness is formidable.

Perhaps commentators were overselling the marquee night match, and certainly the audience was hoping for a potent confrontation, but the advance hype died a quick death in a merciless opening set wherein Shapovalov couldn’t even secure a hold until the sixth game, raising his arms in a gesture of mock triumph as he avoided the doughnut. He did, however, suss out Alcaraz’s only vulnerability by confounding him with drop shots and going hard to the net. But double faults killed the Canadian: 10 in the match, three in a row in the third game of the second set, three in a row in first game of the third set, part and parcel of 39 unforced errors. Alcaraz didn’t need that kind of generosity. Thanks much, though.

With new coach Matt Daly looking on — it’s been a coaching carousel for the southpaw and another matter of concern — Shapovalov dialed down his wild side in the second set, instead constructing smart points, before Alcaraz broke-broke back to draw level and surge ahead. Shapovalov’s usually reliable serve didn’t do him any favours, either, as he struggled getting just 56 per cent of first serves in and winning only 51 per cent of those points. Oddly, no aces from either player.

“Second set, I could have probably had it,” said Shapovalov. “I had a lot of chances — obviously I was up — but a little bit (of a) loss of concentration on the serve. I haven’t played too much, you know. So it’s about being in those situations against top guys. It’s a little bit different, it’s another step forward. Solidifying and staying on top is not always easy. You need to have matches. You need to play a lot.”

He assured that his knee is holding up fine. “I’m happy with my tournament. I was definitely not expecting this. Finishing healthy, feeling good, playing three matches. It’s a good feeling.”

The victory brought Alcaraz’s record for the season to 33-3, with 23 wins on his preferred clay surface. A quarterfinalist at the French Open in 2022, he’s the youngest No. 1 seed at Roland Garros since Bjorn Borg in 1976 and youngest world No. 1 in the history of ATP computerized rankings.

Fellow youngster, 21-year-old Lorenzo Musetti, awaits in the round of 16 for Alcaraz, who’s dropped only one set this week. Musetti won their only previous meeting last year in Hamburg, also on clay.

The elimination of Shapovalov leaves only Bianca Andreescu still standing among Canadians in singles play. The Mississauga native has a Saturday morning third-round date with Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko.