Ben Shelton, the U.S. Open runner-up, marked his 24th birthday by progressing to the third round of the Shanghai Masters, defeating Daniel Altmaier 6-3, 7-6 (6) in this ATP 1000 tournament. Following his performance at the U.S. Open, Shelton participated in the Davis Cup for the United States, where he unfortunately lost both of his singles matches after opting out of the Laver Cup team event.
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Top-seeded Alexander Zverev, who triumphed over Shelton in the final at Flushing Meadows, was set to face Chinese wild-card entry Wu Yibing next on the main Stadium Court. Novak Djokovic, who secured his 102nd career title at the China Open earlier this week, was scheduled to play a night match Friday against Hubert Hurkacz.
In other early results from Shanghai, ninth-seeded Alex de Minaur advanced to the third round after Alex Molcan withdrew due to an undisclosed ailment. De Minaur had previously retired with an adductor injury during the China Open final against Djokovic. Additionally, qualifier Rei Sakamoto achieved a notable victory over 23rd-seeded Andrey Rublev, winning 6-4, 6-4.
Top-ranked Jannik Sinner withdrew from the Shanghai tournament this week, announcing he would take the remainder of 2026 off due to a right knee injury. Djokovic stated he plans to reach out to Sinner concerning his difficult season.