Ben Shelton defeats Roberto Bautista Agut in Cincinnati

Cincinnati

Worth the wait! Shelton defeats Bautista Agut in Cincinnati

Toronto champion to face Lehecka in fourth round

Dylan Buell/Getty Images Ben Shelton in action against Roberto Bautista Agut on Wednesday in Cincinnati. By ATP Staff

Ohio rain may have kept Ben Shelton waiting across the past two days at the Cincinnati Open, but the in-form American was poised and ready to clinch a fourth-round spot when the opportunity came.

In a match originally scheduled for Tuesday’s night session at the ATP Masters 1000, Shelton overcame Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6(3), 6-3 after another rain-interrupted day on Grandstand. The fifth-seeded Shelton clinched the opening set in a tie-break on Wednesday and then rebounded strongly after a two-hour rain delay at 2-1 in the second set to close out the match.

“The rain delay was a little reset for me,” Shelton said. “I came out playing much more aggressive tennis, my brand of tennis, and I’m happy how I finished it.

“I don’t think I did a great job [handling the match postponement last night]. We were here late last night and I wasn’t able to wind down and get to sleep right away. It was tough to get up this morning and be ready for a 1 o’clock match. It was a tough day at the office for sure.”

With his one-hour, 49-minute victory against Bautista Agut, Shelton improved to 3-0 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series and extended his winning streak to eight matches. The 22-year-old, who lifted his maiden Masters 1000 title last week in Toronto, is now 28-1 for the season after winning the first set.

Renowned for his powerful, hard-kicking lefty serve, Shelton nonetheless faced real peril early against Bautista Agut. He fended off three break points in the opening game of the match and two more in the third game, but after pulling through those tests he went on to dominate the first-set tie-break and assume control.

He stepped up his aggression after the resumption, finishing the match with 16 aces and 12 forehand winners according to Infosys ATP Stats. He also saved all eight break points he faced in the match and won 71 per cent of the Spaniard's second-serve points.

Now 34-16 for the season, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, Shelton is two victories away from hitting new heights in the PIF ATP Rankings. Competing in Cincinnati as the World No. 6, he would rise to a career-high No. 5 by reaching the semi-finals. Shelton is also fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin and in strong contention to seal a debut appearance at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals.

Standing in the American’s way in the fourth round will be 22nd seed Jiri Lehecka. Shelton triumphed in straight sets in the pair’s only previous tour-level meeting, in June on grass in Stuttgart.

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