ATP Tour

Defending champion Shelton ousts Fonseca in Montreal R4

Defending champion Ben Shelton poured cold water on the red-hot run of 19-year-old Joao Fonseca Sunday at the National Bank Open presented by Rogers, where he defeated the Brazilian teenager 6-3, 7-6(3) to advance to the quarter-finals.

Neither player had dropped a set this week in Montreal, and Shelton maintained his streak in the fourth round, battling through windy conditions and an early break deficit in both sets to emerge victorious in one hour and 48 minutes.

"It was tough out there today and I competed well," Shelton said. "It wasn't easy conditions to play in. I struggled to find my footing on a lot of balls, as did he. A lot of it just comes down to grit in a match like this. So to come through with a win against a really high-quality player like Joao is huge for me."

In an entertaining start, Shelton and Fonseca traded early breaks in the opening set before the American produced a sizzling forehand winner at 4-3, 15/30 that barely caught the line. Shelton, the No. 10 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, then earned a crucial break in the same game to move ahead 5-3, before sealing the set with a decisive hold.

Watch Shelton's forehand stunner in the first set:

In the second set, Fonseca came flying out of the gate to take a 3-0 lead. At 3-1, however, the Brazilian appeared to tweak his right ankle before jumping to chase down an overhead as he tried to save a break point. The misstep seemed to temporarily affect his movement, with Shelton later breaking back in the game, then levelling at 3-3. But Fonseca continued fighting to keep his chances alive.

While the Brazilian even saved a break point at 5-5, Shelton produced a watertight tie-break to eventually seal the win and notch his 30th victory of the season. The American finished having won 78 per cent (35/45) of his first-serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, and also showed conviction in the forecourt, winning 14 of 18 points at net.

"For me, it's about playing aggressive tennis," Shelton shared. "I look to try to get to the net and be aggressive and take the time away. I thought I did a great job of that in the tie-break today, came up with clutch volleys, and ultimately that's what made me win tonight."

With the triumph, the fifth seed improved to 2-0 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Fonseca, having also defeated the #NextGenATP star earlier this year in Munich. Fonseca was aiming to advance to his first quarter-final at the Canadian Masters 1000 event. The 19-year-old earned wins against former World No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas and ninth seed Casper Ruud in Montreal but could not find a way past Shelton.

Shelton is seeking his fourth title of the season, having triumphed in Dallas, Munich and Stuttgart. The American, who is the only Top-10 player remaining in the Montreal draw, will face Jakub Mensik for a place in the semi-finals. Shelton and Mensik are the only two former Masters 1000 champions left in the draw.

Mensik, the 13th seed, closed Sunday’s play with a 6-4, 7-5 victory against Botic van de Zandschulp, who upset fourth seed Daniil Medvedev in the second round. After easing through the first set, the 20-year-old Czech was three points away from losing the second set at 4-5, but reeled off three consecutive games to seal the victory in one hour and 29 minutes.

Watch highlights from Mensik vs. Van de Zandschulp:

"It was not an easy situation for me with him serving for the set," Mensik said. "In the second set, I felt like I was playing a bit worse and struggling to find rhythm throughout the whole match. But the longer I was staying on the court, I was feeling better and better."