An account of the Cincinnati Masters says Rafa Jódar came back from 1-5 in the deciding set, saved two match points and beat Denis Shapovalov 7-5, 4-6, 7-5. It describes the 19-year-old from Madrid, then ranked 11th, winning after nearly three hours. But available independent records do not confirm the match details. The Real Federación Española de Tenis lists Jódar as an octafinalist at the 2026 Cincinnati Masters, placing him in the round-of-16 stage.
The account also says Jódar had problems with his left leg and that play stopped twice over his shoelaces, the second time at 3-5 in the third set. It describes the pause as lasting more than a minute and says Shapovalov argued with the chair umpire, claiming the break cooled his momentum. It further alleges that Shapovalov confronted Jódar at the handshake, which ended without further escalation. No official umpire report or independently verified source in the available results confirms those details.
The account attributes comments to Jódar after the match, saying he acknowledged the disruption and planned to bring extra shoes to future matches. It also says his father helped replace the laces while Shapovalov waited on the bench. The available independent sources do not corroborate either the comments or the reported scene.
The account says Jódar was due to face Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo, ranked 29th, after Tabilo defeated Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff. It also says the pair had met twice that year, each winning once, with Jódar taking their latest encounter. Those match details are not independently confirmed by the available results.
Elsewhere in Cincinnati, the account reports that Novak Djokovic lost to Argentina’s Thiago Agustín Tirante and experienced physical discomfort during the match. The do not independently verify that result or the reported discomfort. Weather disruptions had also threatened the schedule for the Jódar-Shapovalov encounter (see more on the rain risk for this match).
The Cincinnati Masters is an ATP Masters 1000 event and a basic hard-court test ahead of the US Open. Reporting on Jódar’s 2026 season says he won his first ATP title in Marrakech on 5 April, reached the Barcelona semifinals as a wild card and earned his first Masters victories in Miami. He later made the Washington final and the Canadian Open semifinals, results that preceded his rise into the world’s top 15.
In October, Jódar reached his first Masters 1000 final at the Shanghai Masters, losing to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 1-6, 7-6(5), 6-4. Europa Press reported that the result lifted Jódar to a career-best No. 11 in the world rankings, while Mundo Deportivo listed him on 3,234 points. He began the season ranked No. 165.
The available records establish Jódar’s Shanghai breakthrough, but they do not verify the reported shoe interruptions or exchange with Shapovalov in Cincinnati. The Spanish Tennis Federation’s listing confirms Jódar reached the tournament’s round-of-16 stage, without confirming the specific match account.
