Shelton Retains Canadian Open Title in Historic All-American Final
Ben Shelton retained his National Bank Open title on 13 August 2026, beating fellow American Brandon Nakashima 6-3, 7-6(4) in Montreal to become only the fourth man this century to win the tournament back-to-back. The victory earned Shelton $1,151,420 in prize money and his second ATP Masters 1000 championship — the tier of tournaments just below the four Grand Slams in prestige (The Guardian).
Shelton, seeded fifth, had not dropped a set all week and rode an 11-match winning streak on Canadian soil into the final. He needed just one hour and 27 minutes to finish the job, striking 22 winners to Nakashima's 19 while committing only 12 unforced errors — shots lost to mistakes rather than opponent pressure — against Nakashima's 21 (The Guardian).
The first set was straightforward. Shelton broke Nakashima's serve — winning one of the server's games — and held from there to take it 6-3. The second set went the distance. With both players holding serve throughout, it came down to a tiebreak, the first-to-seven mini-game used to decide a set locked at 6-6. Shelton pulled ahead and closed it out 7-4, the ball barely bouncing twice before he celebrated.
For Nakashima, seeded 28th and ranked 31st in the world, the occasion was a milestone regardless of the result. He turned 25 on 3 August and was appearing in his first career ATP Masters 1000 semifinal, let alone final, having never before reached this stage at one of the tour's elite events (National Bank Open). His only career tour-level title came in San Diego in 2022. But the head-to-head record made sobering reading: the Montreal final was his sixth meeting with Shelton, and his sixth defeat. He has now lost all six, with only a single set won across the entire rivalry (The Guardian).
The final itself was a first: no two American men had ever met in an ATP Masters 1000 title match before (National Bank Open). That it happened in Canada, at a tournament Shelton won a year earlier in Toronto, gave the occasion an extra edge. He joins Rafael Nadal (2018-19), Andy Murray (2009-10) and Novak Djokovic (2011-12) as the only men this century to defend the Canadian title (The Guardian).
Shelton's 2026 season is gathering real momentum. Montreal was his fourth title of the year, following wins in Dallas, Munich and Stuttgart. His semifinal was a demolition job — a 6-2, 6-3 win over the rising Learner Tien — and the final was equally controlled. Two sets, no real alarm.
Meanwhile, the ATP tour moved straight on to Cincinnati. On the first day of the Cincinnati Open in Mason, Ohio, Cameron Norrie came from a set down to beat Dino Prizmic 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 and set up a second-round meeting with top seed Alexander Zverev. Martin Landaluce upset Britain's Jack Draper 6-3, 7-5 to end a six-match losing streak, while Jan-Lennard Struff, Thiago Agustin Tirante, Denis Shapovalov, Miomir Kecmanovic and Mariano Navone all advanced. Terence Atmane moved through when Marton Fucsovics retired (The Guardian).
The US Open, the final Grand Slam of the year, begins in just under three weeks. Shelton now has a hard-court title and a Masters 1000 defence behind him. The maths is simple: form like this travels to Flushing Meadows.
