Ben Shelton continued his impressive start to his career on red clay on Monday at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, where he downed fellow American Mackenzie McDonald 7-5, 6-4 to reach the second round at the ATP 500.
The #NextGenATP American, who only competed on red clay for the first time in his life in Estoril two weeks ago, converted five of his six break points to clinch a 99-minute win against the World No. 54 McDonald. His kick serve and huge forehand were particularly instrumental as he won four games in a row from 2-4 in the second set to claim victory.
“I thought that this was definitely a good start to the tournament for me,” the 20-year-old Shelton told ATPTour.com. “I think that I did some things well, some things I could have done better, and over the next couple of days I’m going to hope to improve on those things and sharpen my game.
“I’m happy with the way that I competed today, and obviously playing on a clay court, things are going to happen. There’s a little more back and forth and things can get tricky, so I’m happy with how tough I was mentally today and my competitive spirit.”
Shelton next faces third seed Casper Ruud in Barcelona. Last August, when he was still a relatively unknown No. 299-ranked college player, the American stunned Ruud in straight sets on the hard courts of Cincinnati. This time around, Shelton knows he will have to find a path to victory without the element of surprise against the Norwegian, who is a nine-time ATP Tour titlist on clay.
“Different surface, different circumstances,” said Shelton, currently at a career-high No. 37 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. “I don’t think he had any idea who I was the last time I played him, and I know he knows me now. I assume that he’ll be more prepared for some of my things I’m going to throw at him and I’m really excited for that matchup.”
[ATP APP]
Also on Monday, Bernabe Zapata Miralles gave the home fans something to cheer in the opening match on Pista Rafa Nadal. The 26-year-old Spaniard defeated Attila Balazs 6-2, 6-2 to improve to 10-9 for the season and set an all-Spanish second-round meeting with 13th seed Roberto Bautista Agut.
Pablo Andujar was unable to join his countrymen in the second round. Tomas Martin Etcheverry defeated the 2015 finalist 6-2, 7-5 on his Barcelona debut to advance to a second-round meeting with Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Nuno Borges also prevailed in straight sets against Ilya Ivashka. The World No. 79’s 6-2, 6-3 triumph earned him a Tuesday clash against top seed and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
Emil Ruusuvuori enjoyed a comfortable opening win at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899. The Finn dispatched Alexander Bublik 6-0, 6-3 in just 56 minutes to prevail against the Kazakh in Barcelona for the second time in as many years. Ruusuvuori’s next opponent will be fifth seed Frances Tiafoe. Nicolas Jarry, a titlist on clay already this year in Santiago, beat Marco Trungelliti 7-5, 6-3.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]