Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe picked up a pair of impressive clay-court wins in the semifinals of the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship on Saturday afternoon. The result is an all-American battle for the title on Sunday.
Shelton, who had never advanced to an ATP quarterfinal on clay prior to arriving in Houston, defeated 2023 runner-up Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-4.
“You have a lot of time out here, playing on clay,” the top seed said. “The game just moves a little bit slower, you have more time to process. I tried to use that to my advantage today and really happy to be in the finals my first time here in Houston.”
Tiafoe, the defending champion, made a return trip to the final by beating Cordoba winner Luciano Darderi 6-2, 7-6(2). The world No. 21 raced to a 6-0 lead in the second-set tiebreaker before converting his third match point.
“(It was a) great performance from me today,” Tiafoe commented. “It’s a little different clay out here in Houston; you can play more like (it’s) a hard court. But he’s a tough out on this surface for sure and he’s going to be a tough out on this surface for a long time.”
Shelton vs. Tiafoe is a rematch of the 2023 U.S. Open quarterfinals, when Shelton prevailed in four sets.
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