The Dallas Open fans have just been treated to a fantastic all-American final, in which Ben Shelton defeated Taylor Fritz.
Shelton was full of praise for Fritz after winning their thrilling battle, with the duo finally able to be split after one hour and 51 minutes of action.
The Dallas Open final involved the top two seeds, with second seed Shelton overcoming first seed Fritz 3-6, 6-3, 7-5.
Shelton is focused on further improvement following the win, which represents his fourth career ATP title, and very first indoors.
The hugely exciting final has now been discussed by John Isner, who won 16 titles during his successful career.
Who is your favorite ATP player right now?
John Isner claims the Dallas fans wanted Ben Shelton to beat Taylor Fritz
Isner shared his take on the crowd watching the Dallas Open final, saying on the Nothing Major Show: “No disrespect for Taylor but it was a partisan crowd for Ben, but in a respectful way.
“We have talked about this before, but he has that it factor. He is electric out there. He is so athletic, they had that one crazy point in that third set that Ben won.
“He had the place in raptures for him. Everyone respected the hell out of what Taylor was doing, you have to give so much credit to him.
“The guy is the walking wounded coming into this tournament, he is barely practicing, he took a medical timeout in the first match and sure enough he makes the final 7-5 in the third. He is an animal. His pain tolerance is crazy.”
Can Ben Shelton or Taylor Fritz end America’s Grand Slam drought?
Indeed, Fritz played through injury in Dallas, but deserves huge credit for persevering and making it all the way to the final.
And he’s not slowing down either, with the American set to play in the Delray Beach Open this week, where he is the top seed once again.
At eighth in the ATP rankings, he is the top-ranked American in men’s tennis right now, one spot ahead of Shelton in ninth.
| Rank | Player |
| 8 | Taylor Fritz |
| 9 | Ben Shelton |
| 23 | Learner Tien |
| 24 | Tommy Paul |
| 28 | Frances Tiafoe |
| 29 | Brandon Nakashima |
| 41 | Alex Michelsen |
| 47 | Jenson Brooksby |
| 50 | Sebastian Korda |
| 64 | Marcos Giron |
But despite their Top 10 status, neither player has been able to help end the disastrous American Grand Slam drought.
Shelton has been following in the footsteps of Andy Roddick away from the majors, but the latter represents the last American man to win such a title.
He did so at the US Open in 2003, with Fritz coming agonizingly close when he lost the final of the same tournament in 2024.
Which American man has the best chance of winning a Grand Slam in 2026?
Shelton has never reached a major final, but at 23 he arguably represents America’s best chance of success in the near future, ahead of Fritz.
He is closely followed by Learner Tien, who at 20 has already reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, doing so this year.
Alex Michelsen and Ethan Quinn, who are both 21 years old, are among the other young Americans looking to make big moves in the coming years.
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