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American Ben Shelton produced a spirited display to battle past Casper Ruud and book a spot in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open 2026 on Monday, January 26. Shelton beat Ruud 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 in the 4th-round meeting between them to set up a mouth-watering clash against defending champion Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals.
It was a resilient performance from 23-year-old Shelton, who came back from a set down against Ruud to secure a thrilling victory in two hours and 36 minutes and book a spot in the quarter-finals. Shelton will be playing in the Australian Open quarter-finals for the first time after suffering a first-round exit last year.
He also failed to reach the last eight of any of the four Grand Slams last year. However, the American youngster combined bursts of aggression with his gritty defending on the court to get past Ruud, who failed to capitalise despite going 1-0 up after taking the first set 6-3.
Pumped after his victory over Ruud, Shelton said he is rowdy and likes a rowdy crowd, confessing his love for the Australian Open, where there is no dearth of support for talent. Ruud said the Australian Open has become one of his favourite tournaments, thanks to the roaring atmosphere.
"For me, the atmosphere is everything. I’m definitely a competitor. I’m rowdy on the court and I look forward to rowdy crowds. Down here in Australia, there’s no shortage… From my first experience, I fell in love with this tournament. It’s one of my favourites marked down on the calendar every year," said Shelton after his victory.
Ruud is now set to face his biggest challenge in the tournament yet as he gears up to take on defending champion Sinner in the quarter-finals. The world no.2 Italian has been in exceptional form in the tournament so far and defeated fellow Italian Luciano Darderi in straight sets in the 4th round on Monday to storm into the quarters.
Meanwhile, India's challenge at the Australian Open 2026 ended on Monday after Yuki Bhambri's exit from the tournament. Bhambri and his Swedish partner Andre Goransson were knocked out of the men's doubles after losing 6-7(7), 3-6 to Brazil’s unseeded pairing of Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos in the third round.
