Ironic that it's named after a powerful, extraordinary woman yet is openly discriminating against female players: Denis Shapovalov hits out at Queen's Club for not allowing women to train at practice courts

Denis Shapovalov has sensationally accused the Queen's Club in London of sexist behavior towards female players, coming in light of the private club not allowing women to train at the ground alongside their male counterparts.

The Canadian is at the club this week to participate in the ATP 500 Queen's Club Championships, where he was accompanied by his girlfriend Mirjam Bjorklund. Bjroklund, ranked World No. 124 on the WTA Tour, is also participating in a tennis tournament in Britain this week -- at the ITF Great Britain 10A.

This is where it's speculated that the aforementioned conflict arose, with the club denying the Swede permission to practice alongside Shapovalov, considering that the request comes in the midst of a tournament going on.

The World No. 15 took to social media to lambast the tournament organizers for their decision, remarking that it was ironic that a club named after a "powerful" and "extraordinary" woman was resorting to such discriminatory behavior. For those unaware, the Queen's Club is named after Queen Victoria, the second-longest reigning monarch in British history and the first patron of the club.

The 23-year-old was of the opinion that not allowing women to practice at the club's training grounds this close to Wimbledon was particularly unfair, since it would mess with their preparation for the crown jewel of the tennis calendar.

Denis Shapovalov further hoped that such incidents would not happen in the future and that the club could make amends to its policy soon, lest it get caught on the wrong side of history.

"Ironic that the Queen's Club is named after a powerful, extraordinary woman yet is openly discriminating against professional female tennis players by not allowing them to train at the club when they need to prepare for Wimbledon," Shapovalov wrote. "Time to review this policy."

Denis Shapovalov's singles stint at Queen's Club comes to early end but he has reached the semifinals in doubles

Denis Shapovalov is two wins short of winning the doubles title at the Queen's Club Championships

On the grasscourt of the Queen's Club Championships, Denis Shapovalov has had contrasting fortunes. In singles, the sixth seed crashed out in the very first round, losing to Tommy Paul unexpectedly in three sets.

In doubles, however, the 23-year-old has managed to reach the semifinals partnering up with Rohan Bopanna. The Indian-Canadian pair defeated Diego Schwartzman and Pedro Martinez in the first round, followed by a victory over the all-Columbian pairing of Robert Farah and Juan Sebastian Cabal in the quarterfinals.

Up next, the duo will take on Harri Heliovaara and Lloyd Glasspool later today for a spot in the final. A win against the Finnish-British pair would pit Shapovalov and Bopanna against second seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic in the summit clash.