WATCH: Denis Shapovalov accidentally hits chair umpire on the head during Swiss Indoors Basel QF

When Denis Shapovalov was playing Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard at the 2024 Swiss Indoors Basel, he unintentionally struck the chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani on the head. Before the match could resume, the Canadian hurried to apologize to the umpire. On Friday, October 25, Shapovalov participated in the ATP 500 quarterfinals in Basel against an inspired Mpetshi Perricard.

When the Canadian tennis player unintentionally struck Lahyani in the first stages of the match, it was a huge scare. Denis Shapovalov's shot went straight to the chair umpire as he tried to return one of Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard's huge wide serves. The mistake stunned the 25-year-old, who hurriedly rushed to apologize. Lahyani quickly smiled and shook hands with him. Fortunately, Shapovalov was not penalized because the shot was unintentional and the ball struck the chair umpire in the middle of the rally. 

Watch here the video:

🫢 Denis Shapovalov hits the umpire with the ball again, but fortunately unintentionallypic.twitter.com/QEVseUfujv

— We Are Tennis (@WeAreTennis) October 26, 2024

Denis Shapovalov's honest mistake on court

Mpetshi Perricard saved a few set points when Denis Shapovalov defeated him 7-6(7) in the first set, but the young player recovered in time to pull off an incredible comeback, defeating Shapovalov in the final set tiebreak 6-7(7), 6-3, 7-6(3) to effectively terminate his season. He now scheduled a matchup with Holger Rune, a 2022 finalist, for a position in the Swiss Indoors final on Sunday. The victor of their match will compete for the title against Arthur Fils or Ben Shelton.

There have been instances where a chair umpire has been struck by a Denis Shapovalov shot. When opponent Kyle Edmund broke Shapovalov in the third set of Canada's 2017. During the Davis Cup match against Great Britain, Shapovalov aggressively hit chair umpire Arnauld Gabas in the eye. The legendary event left Gabas with a black eye, and the Canadian tennis player was promptly eliminated from the match, even though his aim was unintentional.