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Match Details
Fixture: (3) Casper Ruud vs Ben Shelton.
Tournament: Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell 2023.
Round: Second Round (Round of 32).
Venue: Real Club de Tenis Barcelona.
Category: ATP 500.
Surface: Outdoor clay.
Prize money: €2,722,480.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Casper Ruud vs Ben Shelton preview
World No. 3 Casper Ruud will take on rising young American Ben Shelton in the second round of the 2023 Barcelona Open.
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Ruud kicked off the clay swing by competing at the Estoril Open. Following a first-round bye, he needed three sets to get past home favorite Joao Sousa in the second round. He then scored a commanding win over defending champion Sebastian Baez in the quarterfinals.
A tough three-set victory over Quentin Halys propelled Ruud into the final and he defeated Miomir Kecmanovic in the summit clash to win his first title of the season. However, the Norwegian was unable to sustain the momentum as he suffered a shock defeat to Jan-Lennard Struff in the third round of the Monte-Carlo Masters.
As one of the seeded players at the Barcelona Open, Ruud was the recipient of a first-round bye. His best result at the venue has been a quarterfinal appearance in 2022, losing to Pablo Carreno Busta in three sets.
Shelton, meanwhile, was drawn against fellow American Mackenzie McDonald in the first round here. The 20-year-old secured an early break of serve to go 4-1 up, but let go of the lead as his opponent managed to level the score.
With McDonald serving to stay in the set at 6-5, Shelton broke his serve to clinch the set. The young American from Georgia jumped to a 2-0 lead in the second set, but dropped the next four games to trail 4-2. He then raised his level by reeling off the next four consecutive games to win the match 7-5, 6-4.
Casper Ruud vs Ben Shelton head-to-head
Shelton leads Ruud 1-0 in the head-to-head. He won their previous encounter at the 2022 Cincinnati Masters in straight sets.
Casper Ruud vs Ben Shelton odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Casper Ruud vs Ben Shelton prediction
Sheton performed rather well during his first-round win over McDonald.
He fired nine aces, while putting in 72% of his first serves in play, and was also quite clutch with regards to break point opportunities, going 5/6 on them. However, this is the American's debut clay season on the ATP tour.
Shelton will now need to get past against one of the tour's most accomplished clay-courters. Ruud has won nine titles on the surface, including one this year.
However, consistency has eluded him so far this season. Aside from his title-winning run at the Estoril Open, the Norwegian hasn't won back-to-back matches anywhere else.
Shelton's serve is quite the weapon and ranks 10th when it comes to service games won this year on the tour. Ruud, on the other hand, trails the American in the same department and is ranked 20th. The Norwegian's backhand has been his source of woes for a while now.
Shelton's only win over a top 10 player has been over Ruud, but if he manages to defeat him on clay, that'll be an ever bigger upset. Ruud's prowess on clay stacks the deck in his favor by a considerable margin, and is likely to advance further.
Pick: Casper Ruud to win in straight sets.
