Cincinnati: Portuguese qualifier Jaime Faria stunned Ben Shelton at the Cincinnati Open, thrashing the American’s hope of back-to-back deep Masters 1000 runs.
Faria took advantage of a sluggish start from Shelton, who was competing in his first match since winning the Masters 1000 event in Montreal last week, and registered a 6-4, 6-4 win.
The win marks the first Top 10 win of Faria’s career and also snapped Shelton’s six-match win streak.
Faria trailed Shelton 1-4 in the second set before rallying off five straight games to seal the match. Shelton had his chances to fight back throughout the evening, but he converted just 1/12 break points against Faria, according to ATP Stats.
Next up for Faria is a third-round clash with Australia’s Adam Walton, who defeated Ignacio Buse 6-4, 6-3 in his second-round match on Sunday.
Earleir, sixth seed Taylor Fritz moved past fellow countryman Alex Michelsen by a score of 6-3, 6-4 in his opening round match.
Fritz will face Daniel Merida Aguilar in the third round following the Spaniard’s 6-3, 6-2 win over Zizou Bergs.
World No. 12 Learner Tien also got off to a winning start in Cincinnati as the American looks to continue his momentum from a semi-final finish last week in Montreal.
Tien took care of business with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win in his first clash against Sebastian Baez, setting up a third round matchup with Frances Tiafoe, who defeated Lorenzo Sonego 6-3, 6-4 in the final match of the day on Sunday. Agencies
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