Shapovalov Opens Up About ‘Annoying” 2026

Denis Shapovalov has a lot of positives going on in his life. He was married to longtime fiancé Mirjam Bjorklund in 2025 in an intimate ceremony in Greece last September. The Canadian called it the most joyous moment of his life. 

His on-court life has been far from a honeymoon in 2026, however. 

Injuries and rough luck have kept him under .500 for the season, at 13-16, and his long awaited trip to Montreal for the Canadian Masters ended in a disappointing retirement this week (4-6 6-4 3-0 RET to Zachary Svajda). 

The former World No.10, who reached the final in Los Cabos just a week ago, but suffered an ankle injury in the process, says he did everything he can to show up in good form at his home Masters, but things didn’t work out. 

2026, a pain – literally.

From his last match at Indian Wells – a loss to Jannik Sinner – to his first match at Queen’s Club, Sinner lost eight of ten. 

“It’s been very tricky,” he said. “It’s been an annoying year. I’ve been building good momentum, playing well in Indian Wells. Miami, okay, it was tough. And then injuries kind of started thereafter.” 

Clay, never his best surface, resulted in more fits and starts. 

“Even weeks, like Munich, where I was kind of building some momentum, were interrupted by pains and aches. And it’s just been kind of one thing after another, it feels like.”

The Canadian went to Wimbledon, where he is a former semifinalist, with an even bigger issue. None of it has killed his self-belief, however. 

“I played Wimbledon with a fractured rib,” he said. “I played here with a swollen ankle. And, yeah, I’m still competing. I’m still close to the [top guys]… the key for me is to try to take a bit more time and be healthy.” 

Shapovalov knows it isn’t easy to take time off, especially with a ranking of No.43, where he is on the cusp of being seeded at Slams. 

“Unfortunately this tour nowadays is very unforgiving,” he said. “There’s not many weeks where you can just sit back and rest. It’s tough. But, yeah, we have to do it.” 

He referred to Jack Draper, who has had even bigger struggles and has been forced to pull out of the last two majors as an example. 

“A guy like Jack, just as an example, he’s been struggling, and he’s been having to make some tough calls, even last week in Washington pulling out,” Shapovalov said. 

“So I might have to start making some of those tougher calls soon, just prioritizing the body, because, again, I know that if I’m healthy and I’m playing well, I’m able to produce a high level.”