Former champion Ben Shelton kicked off his campaign at the 2026 U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship with a 7-6(5), 7-6(3) victory over Zhizhen Zhang on Wednesday afternoon. Neither man broke serve a single time over the course of one hour and 53 minutes.
“It was my first match in almost a year on clay,” Shelton noted. “I didn’t feel that comfortable playing from the baseline yet, it’s just something that’s going to take time and take a few matches. I knew I had to be effective with my serve tonight and hit a few aces, and I’m happy that I did.”
It was a much different story in the nightcap between Tommy Paul and Adolfo Daniel Vallejo. There were a whopping 10 service breaks before Paul ultimately prevailed 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 after two hours and 24 minutes.
“It was tough for both of us to hold,” Paul admitted. “I think in those long rallies it was about digging deep, seeing who could come out on top with the long ones. I started playing a little bit more aggressive; I thought it helped me out. It’s always tough in these early rounds in these tournaments, especially changing surfaces. Hopefully all that court time today can help me going forward in the tournament.”
On quarterfinal Friday in Houston it will be Shelton vs. Thiago Agustin Tirante and Paul vs. Tomas Martin Etcheverry.