2024 Houston champion remains undefeated at the River Oaks Country Club.
The No. 9-ranked American took out China’s Zhang Zhizhen, 7-6(5), 7-6(3) in one hour and 53 minutes on Wednesday to reach his 26th career ATP quarterfinal.
“I’m super happy,” Shelton, who fired 21 aces, said. “I thought it was really difficult conditions tonight with the wind. To be honest, I served really well at the end of the breaker, I got a couple of lucky breaks, and sometimes that’s tennis.”
The 23-year-old top seed will face Thiago Agustín Tirante in the quarterfinals. Tirante breezed past American Mackenzie McDonald, 6-2, 6-0.
Shelton says he hopes to have his feet beneath him as the week progresses. On Wednesday, he was happy to let his serve do the talking, saving the only break point he faced to improve to 16-9 on clay since the start of 2024.
Shelton defeated Frances Tiafoe for the title in Houston in 2024, but did not make the trek to the River Oaks Country Club last year.
“It was my first match of the year on clay,” he said. “I didn’t feel that comfortable playing from the baseline yet—it’s just something that’s going to take time and a few matches. I knew I had to be effective with my serve tonight and hit a few aces, and I’m really happy that I did.”
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