Shelton Roars Back for Dallas Thriller
Under the roar of a home crowd, Ben Shelton stared down three championship points against Taylor Fritz, turning a season of close calls into his first title of 2026 at the Nexo Dallas Open.
In the charged air of the Dallas arena on February 15, 2026, Ben Shelton unleashed his lefty thunder just when the stakes demanded it most. The 23-year-old American, top seed at the Nexo Dallas Open, dropped the first set to Taylor Fritz in a 3-6 blur of crisp returns and booming serves that tested his baseline resilience. But Shelton clawed back with a 6-3 second set, fueled by deeper crosscourt forehands that began to disrupt his compatriot’s rhythm, setting up a decider where every point pulsed with tension.
“It feels amazing. I thank God, because I needed something super natural to end up winning this tournament with all the holes that I was in,” said Shelton, who came through four deciding-set battles in Dallas. “I feel grateful to play five matches out here with these crowds. The energy was amazing.
“I had to fight until the last minute. Fritz was playing very good tennis and I was struggling a lot with what he was throwing at me. I tried to be a competitor through and through, and I ended up coming out on top. I think it’s a testament to the work me and my team put in.”
Grueling path sharpens mental edge
Shelton’s run through the Nexo Dallas Open had already forged him in the fire of four third-set marathons, each one layering pressure onto a shoulder carrying the weight of a title-less start to the year. Indoors on these swift hard courts, his serve-volley forays added unpredictability, but Fritz’s flat inside-out forehands kept forcing defensive scrambles early in the final. The crowd’s energy, building with every hold, turned the venue into a cauldron that amplified Shelton’s growing resolve as he wrested momentum back in the second set with a one–two punch that broke serve.
By the decider, fatigue tugged at both players, yet Shelton’s fitness—honed through relentless off-season endurance work—allowed him to extend rallies, his heavy topspin forehand down-the-line clipping lines to neutralize Fritz’s power. He let a break slip in the third, falling behind 4-5, but the American No. 1’s pace began to waver under the sustained pressure. This gauntlet mirrored Shelton’s 11-4 record in deciding sets since the beginning of 2025, nine of those flips from a set down, a pattern that now defined his indoor grit.
Big Ben strikes in Dallas @BenShelton claims the title on home soil after saving three match points to defeat compatriot Fritz 3-6, 6-3, 7-5! @NexoDallasOpen | #DALOpen pic.twitter.com/rVSowg1Zj7
— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 15, 2026
Championship points ignite comeback fire
With Fritz serving for the match at 5-4 in the third, the 10th game became a nerve-shredding standoff, Shelton facing three championship points amid the arena’s glare. He saved the first with a reflex volley after a net cord, the second by jamming his opponent with a deep return that forced an error, and the third via an ace that grazed the line following tense deuces. That hold flipped the script; Shelton broke back immediately with a backhand passing shot crosscourt, then dropped just three more points on serve to seal the 7-5 finish in one hour and 51 minutes.
The tactical shift was subtle but decisive: Shelton stepped inside the baseline more aggressively on returns, taking Fritz’s 1–2 combinations on the rise and countering with inside-in forehands that opened the court. His improved head-to-head edge, now 2-1 against the American No. 1, highlighted this matchup’s evolution, where endurance trumped raw power in the indoor confines. Fritz’s slice backhand, effective in shorter points, lost bite in longer exchanges, allowing Shelton to dictate tempo with varied pace.
“Once I get a set, I feel pretty confident,” Shelton explained. “Once I’m able to sink my teeth in and feel like I have some sort of rhythm, I just start to loosen up and find my level. I think I’m also in shape — my fitness levels are good — and that probably plays into it.”
Victory propels American duo forward
This explosive win marked Shelton’s second ATP 500 trophy and fourth ATP Tour title overall, his first indoors, a breakthrough that quiets doubts about his consistency on faster surfaces. Fritz, gracious in defeat during the trophy presentation, reaches his 20th tour-level final, a run that underscores his reliability as he heads to Delray Beach as top seed for an ATP 250 event. The pair’s rivalry, now tilted Shelton’s way, promises more high-stakes clashes, with both drawing on this intensity for the spring swing.
“It was a crazy match, a fun match to be a part of — until the end,” Fritz said with a wry smile. “Congrats to Ben and his team. He played great and in the end, he played the big points and important moments really well.” For Shelton, the roar after match point lingers as fuel, bridging Dallas’s pressure to bolder pursuits on the tour ahead, where his mental armor now gleams stronger.
