Ben Shelton, the second seed at the Nexo Dallas Open, faced a challenging test in his second-round match, knowing that his opponent would not make his path easy. Shelton, currently ranked No. 9 in the world, battled against Adrian Mannarino, the runner-up from the previous week’s Montpellier tournament, and secured a place in the quarter-finals after an intense match lasting nearly three hours.
The contest, filled with plenty of twists and turns, saw Shelton prevail with a final score of 7-6(2), 6-7(4), 6-3 after an absorbing two hours and 40 minutes of play. Reflecting on the high-level competition, Shelton remarked, “Ridiculous tennis! I thought [Adrian] played at an extremely high level. He always does against me. We’ve had some crazy matches; the last time I faced him at the US Open, I got injured. It was a big battle for sure. He has a unique style that makes matches very tough, especially on a low-bouncing indoor court.”
Both players demonstrated remarkable skill, with Mannarino, 37 years old, managing to extend the contest by converting his sixth set point for the second set. Despite this setback, Shelton found his rhythm in the deciding set, allowing him to move on to his 25th quarter-final, where he is set to meet Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic. Kecmanovic was the surprise performer of the day, eliminating fifth seed Tommy Paul with a scoreline of 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.
In the earlier matches of the day, defending champion and seventh seed Denis Shapovalov showcased his prowess by defeating Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-4, 6-4 in just 66 minutes, never facing a break point throughout the match. Shapovalov is now scheduled to compete against Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, the third seed.
Marin Cilic, a former US Open champion, celebrated his milestone of achieving 600 career tour-level victories by topping Ethan Quinn 7-6(4), 6-3, securing a spot in his 123rd quarter-final. Next up for Cilic is British qualifier Jack Pennington Jones. The rising star edged past Eliot Spizzirri in a grueling encounter, winning 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-6(4) after nearly three hours.
Pennington Jones, who turned professional last year following a three-season stint at Texas Christian University, is set to make his debut in a quarter-final at the senior professional level. Currently ranked 181, he stands a chance to climb to 110 in the ATP rankings with a victory against the seasoned Croat Cilic.
