Fiery Shapovalov regains composure, pulls out 1st match after Italian Open meltdown

Canada's Denis Shapovalov survived a testy opening match Monday at the Italian Open tennis tournament that saw him swear at the fans after arguing a call with the chair umpire.

Shapovalov, from Richmond Hill, Ont., won the marathon match 7-6 (5), 3-6, 6-3 win over Italy's Lorenzo Sonego in just under three hours 11 minutes in Rome.

The Canadian was down 3-4 in the second set when he crossed the net to check a ball mark on Sonego's side of the court and was given a code violation.

The 13th-seeded Shapovalov then called chair umpire Richard Haigh onto his side of the court and singled out a fan who was heckling him.

"I'm not going to kick him out because I didn't see what he was doing," Haigh said. "I saw you talking to him and you incited it a little bit. I understand you're frustrated."

WATCH | Shapovalov engages in shouting match with fans:

As they argued the fans started to boo, prompting Shapovalov to yell "shut the (expletive) up!"

Shapovalov apologized to Haigh after wrapping up the win.

"A lot of things happened in the heat of the moment. I need to be better with my behaviour," said Shapovalov, who will face Georgia's Nikoloz Basilashvili in the second round on Tuesday. "It was my mistake. I'll know the rule for next time. I definitely won't step over the net."

Shapovalov reached the semifinals in Rome two years ago, while Sonego made the last four last year.

Sonego said he was penalized by a decision in the first set when the umpire came down to check a mark and made an overrule, awarding the point to Shapovalov when the Italian thought the point should have been replayed.

There was also a questionable overrule in the third set.

"Things like that shouldn't happen," Sonego said. "They should use video replay. That