The battle to be the top American man has taken another twist after the Houston Open, with Ben Shelton now in the top spot.
Shelton needed just one victory at the Houston Open to overtake Taylor Fritz as the American men’s number one.
And he achieved that feat by beating Zhang Zhizhen, although that was immediately followed by a shock loss to Thiago Agustin Tirante.
Despite the early exit, Shelton now finds himself eighth in the ATP rankings, while Fritz has dropped one spot to ninth place.
And the Americans have been joined in rankings changes by many of their compatriots, including Houston Open champion Tommy Paul.
What is preventing Taylor Fritz from winning a Grand Slam?
Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz swap places in American ATP top 10
Shelton is now the leading man from his nation, closely followed by Fritz, with the pair representing the only Americans in the top 10.
Fresh from his first clay title, Houston winner Paul is now third in the list after climbing three spots to world number 18.
He’s followed by Frances Tiafoe, who has dropped two places to 20th, while Learner Tien completes the top five.
Tien is ranked 22nd on the ATP Tour, and is followed by Brandon Nakashima and Alex Michelsen in 33rd and 35th respectively.
Climbing one spot, Sebastian Korda is 41st, while Ethan Quinn is up two places to 54th.
And despite dropping 23 places to 64th, Jenson Brooksby remains in the American top 10.
| Rank | Change | Player |
| 8 | +1 | Ben Shelton |
| 9 | -1 | Taylor Fritz |
| 18 | +3 | Tommy Paul |
| 20 | -2 | Frances Tiafoe |
| 22 | – | Learner Tien |
| 33 | – | Brandon Nakashima |
| 35 | – | Alex Michelsen |
| 41 | +1 | Sebastian Korda |
| 54 | +2 | Ethan Quinn |
| 64 | -23 | Jenson Brooksby |
Tommy Paul consoles ‘amazing’ Roman Andres Burruchaga in Houston
While Shelton occupies top spot for his nation, it is his countryman Paul who currently has the momentum on clay.
He’s now a five-time ATP champion after a 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 final win over Roman Andres Burruchaga in Houston, during which he saved three championship points.
Congratulating the Argentine on his superb run, which involved wins over Americans Tien and Nakashima, Paul said: “Roman, it was an amazing week.
“Today’s level was seriously great, great level. You’re playing amazing tennis, and it is only going to get better.”
It certainly bodes well for Paul as the French Open nears, with American men desperately seeking to end their nightmare Grand Slam drought.
Which American man has the best chance of winning a Grand Slam in 2026?
Andy Roddick won the US Open in 2003, which represents the last time an American man clinched a Grand Slam title.
The likes of Paul, Shelton and Fritz arguably represent the nation’s greatest chance of ending that nightmare run, but that is a mammoth task.
Fortunately they have plenty of time between now and the end of May to fine-tune their games on clay, but even then the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner will likely prove extremely difficult to beat.
The European duo, who played out an epic match in last year’s French Open final, are currently competing at the Monte Carlo Masters.
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