By
Casper Rudd has secured his place in the third round of the ATP 500, surpassing Ben Shelton at the Barcelona Open.
Both players were good on the day, but following Shelton’s upset at the Cincinnati Masters last August, Rudd was the man standing last.
The Norwegian is currently ranked 34th in the ATP rankings, 34 places ahead of Shelton, so the American was definitely the underdog going into the match.
Shelton defeated fellow American Mackenzie MacDonald in his opening match in the Spanish city to earn a spot in the round of 32. That match was the final, with the 20-year-old winning 7-5, 6-4.
In their only meeting in Cincinnati following Shelton’s victory, Roode certainly had revenge on his mind. The pair battled for an hour and 39 minutes before the Norwegian prevailed 6-2, 7-6 (7-1).
After defeating Shelton, Rude said, “I really wanted my revenge.
«He was playing well, and I thought I was playing well,» he added. I played a perfect first set and he was probably making a few too many mistakes.. but I think in the second set it was all tough games, tough rallies.
“It can be difficult. In the first set, you feel like you got a lot of free points, and so on, but suddenly you start playing like a wall and you start playing really well from the defense. It’s difficult when someone changes in the middle of the match, but I’m very happy that I stayed calm and played a very good breakaway.
The Norwegian put in a good service display, winning 76% (39/51) of his first serve points. However, his second-round performance could have been better, claiming 44% (8/18) of the available points. He converted just 38% (3/8) of the chances he was given and his break point success could have been more convincing.
Shelton was not as clinical as his opponent, winning 59% (26/41) of potential points from his first serve. However, the American was able to make a good effort from his second serve, winning 46% (13/28) of his second serve points. Unfortunately for the American, his break points left him short after winning just 20% (1/5).
The youngster finished the match with three aces and one double fault, which did not help the young star earn a place in the next round.
Rudd will face either Francisco Cerundolo or Francesco Passaro in Thursday’s third round bout.
The world No. 3 will be looking to make the best of the tournament after reaching the quarter-finals for the first time in his career.
Read more: WATCH: Electrifying Carlos Alcaraz delivers some magic at the Barcelona Open
