Ben Shelton Flies into his Second Straight NBO Final

The 23-year-old and defending NBO champion will once again play for the title on Canadian soil after defeating his compatriot Learner Tien 6-2, 6-3 in the semifinals on Wednesday night at IGA Stadium in Montreal to make it 11 victories in a row at the NBO. 

While last year’s run in Toronto featured a lot of comebacks and three-set wins en route to the crown, Shelton’s title defence in 2026 has been nothing short of sublime. Heading into the semi-finals, he was the only player in the draw who hadn’t lost a set in the tournament and that trend continued on Wednesday.

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The first five games against Tien were tightly contested, and Shelton even had to save a break point early on but resisted to his opponent’s hot start. He broke for the first time to lead 4-2 in the opening set and never looked backed. Shelton broke serve again early in the second set and it seemed the only thing that slowed him down was hitting the back wall chasing down a Tien lob at 4-1 in the final frame which forced him to take a medical timeout to treat a cut on his elbow. 

Shelton will look to repeat as champion on Thursday when he takes on Brandon Nakashima in the first all-American final at a Masters 1000 event since 2003 when Andy Roddick beat Mardy Fish to lift the trophy in Cincinnati. He’ll also be playing for his fourth title of the season and the second Masters 1000 triumph of his career.   

Photo: Mathieu Bélanger/Tennis Canada