ATP Tour

Shelton earns statement win in Montreal

Ben Shelton is the highest seed left in the National Bank Open presented by Rogers draw and underlined his title credentials on Friday, when he moved past Zizou Bergs 6-3, 6-2 to reach the fourth round in Montreal.

The fifth seed Shelton is the defending champion, having triumphed in Toronto last year and the 23-year-old has made a faultless start to his campaign this week. After defeating Jenson Brooksby in straight sets in his opening match, the American produced an impressive serving display against World No. 34 Bergs.

Shelton won all 16 of his service points in the second set and made 70 per cent of his first serves overall to record consecutive ATP Masters 1000 wins for the first time this season. Shelton is the only Top-10 player left in the field and will next meet Casper Ruud or Joao Fonseca.

"It was a good day for me," Shelton said. "I thought I managed the match really well. Especially with the way he came out serving. I had to make some adjustments to get into the return games and find ways to break, but down the stretch, I thought that I played great tennis and kept my foot on the gas when I got the lead. I am super happy."

Shelton is seeking his fourth title of the season, having triumphed in Dallas, Munich and Stuttgart.

Earlier, Tallon Griekspoor backed up his win against top seed Alexander Zverev with a hard-fought 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win against Matteo Arnaldi. Griekspoor is up 14 places to No. 55 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings after advancing to the fourth round at a Masters 1000 event for the fifth time.

The Dutchman will next face Daniel Merida after the Spaniard beat Alex Michelsen 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-1. Merida clinched his first ATP Tour title in Umag last month and is now in the fourth round at a Masters 1000 for the first time.

The 21-year-old recovered from failing to convert three match points at 5-4 in the second set to advance after two hours and 15 minutes, levelling his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Michelsen at 1-1.