21-year-old Ben Shelton wins Japan Open for first ATP title; Gael Monfils creates record in Stockholm
Ben Shelton won his first ATP Tour title on Sunday, defeating Russian Aslan Karatsev 7-5, 6-1 at the Japan Open in Tokyo.
The 21-year-old Shelton needed just 84 minutes to dispatch Karatsev at the ATP 500 event. Shelton will reach a career-high No. 15 when the new rankings are released Monday.
He is the sixth player to win his first ATP title this season.
Shelton moved to 2-0 against Karatsev in head-to-head meetings. He is 14-2 in his past 16 matches overall and reached the quarterfinals last week in Shanghai.
At the European Open, third-seeded Alexander Bublik captured his third career title with a 6-4, 6-4 win over fourth-seeded Arthur Fils of France in the final in Antwerp, Belgium.
Bublik, a 26-year-old Kazakhstan native, fired 11 aces and won 36 of 37 first-serve points to end the match in 75 minutes.
At the BNP Paribas Nordic Open, Gael Monfils of France secured his 12th ATP title after rallying to a 4-6, 7-6 (6), 6-3 win over Russian qualifier Pavel Kotov in the final in Stockholm.
Monfils, 37, fired seven aces en route to becoming the oldest champion in the history of the tournament after dispatching Kotov in two hours and 37 minutes. Monfils also won this event in 2021.
