The Paris Masters has taken no prisoners so far. Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic have already lost, and we are only just now in the third round. Ben Shelton was hoping to avoid being the last upset victim when he took on Arthur Rinderknech.
Rinderknech jumped out to a lead with consistent groundstrokes and excellent serve-and-volley skills. He wasn't playing far above his normal level; he was simply executing better than Shelton.
The American changed the script a bit as the second set unfolded, though. More importantly, he was playing better in the bigger moments, and that allowed him to get a late break to even the match at a set apiece. As long as he kept holding serve, he might be able to steal another break in the third set to move on to the next round.
Ben Shelton survives Arthur Rinderknech at the Paris Masters
Still, the match was so tight, and each game featured at least a moment of drama or more, that nothing could be guaranteed. Even a breakdown by Shelton in his next service game would have altered the outcome of the match.
Both were playing well enough to earn the win. Shelton had triple as many winners as unforced errors, and that would normally translate to an easy victory. Rinderknech was matching the American in terms of elite form, however. There will be more important matches to be played in the tournament, but possibly not as well-played as the Shelton and Rinderknech match.
The third set eventually found its way to a seemingly inevitable tie-break. Rinderknech got a 4-2 lead, but neither player was making any mistakes. The match was going to be won by the player that wrung the outcome from their opponent.
Shelton was able to get back to even at 4-all, and with Rinderknech serving at 5-all, Shelton hit a ball just a bit short, and Rinderknech tried to hit it deep with a backhand. The ball landed just out.
On the next point, Shelton was able to keep dictating the point and hit a ball just over the net that Rinderknech could not get to in time before the ball bounced twice. The American had taken the tie-break 7-5, pushed the entire time by the excellent form of the Frenchman.
Ben Shelton will next face another American in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Paris Masters. Tommy Paul reached the round by defeating Quentin Halys in straight sets in the third round.
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