Former champion Ben Shelton opened his campaign at the 2026 US Men’s Clay Court Championship with a 7-6(5), 7-6(3) victory over Zhizhen Zhang on Wednesday afternoon. No broken man works at one time between an hour and 53 minutes.
“It was my first match in almost a year on clay,” Shelton noted. “I didn’t feel comfortable playing from the beginning, it’s something that will take time and take a few games. I knew I had to work well with my serve today and hit a few aces, and I’m glad I did.”
It was a very different story in the nightcap between Tommy Paul and Adolfo Daniel Vallejo. There were 10 major service breaks before Paul prevailed 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 after two hours and 24 minutes.
“It was hard for both of us to catch up,” Paul admitted. “I think in those long meets it was about going deep, seeing who could come out ahead and long. I started to play slowly; I thought it helped me. It’s always difficult in the first rounds of these tournaments, especially to change positions. I hope all that court time today can help me get ahead in this tournament.”
Friday’s quarterfinal in Houston will be Shelton vs. Thiago Agustin Tirante and Paul vs. Thomas Martin Etcheverry.
