INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Ben Shelton became the youngest American man since Andy Roddick in 2004 to reach the quarterfinals at the BNP Paribas Open, beating Brandon Nakashima in straight sets Wednesday.
The 22-year-old Shelton cruised in the second set of a 7-6 (6), 6-1 victory. After a 61-minute opening set, he took a 5-0 lead in just 20 minutes in the deciding set. The 11th-seeded Shelton hasn’t dropped a set in five career matches against Nakashima, a 23-year-old American.
Second-seeded Carlos Alcaraz hasn’t dropped a set on his way to the quarterfinals. The four-time Grand Slam champion breezed to a 6-1, 6-1 victory over No. 14 seed Grigor Dimitrov.
On the women’s side, No. 3 seed Coco Gauff was upset in the round of 16 by unseeded Belinda Bencic. The 28-year-old wild card from Switzerland rallied for a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory.
Bencic returned the favor from the Australian Open in January, when Gauff won after dropping the first set. The defeat came the day before Gauff’s 21st birthday as the 2023 U.S. Open champion was broken at 4-4 in the final set after going up 40-0.
