Shelton overpowers Nakashima to defend National Bank Open men’s singles title

MONTREAL – An exodus of stars and a string of early upsets quickly turned the National Bank Open into anyone’s tournament for the second straight year.

Ben Shelton took full advantage once again — this time with authority.

The fifth seed from the United States repeated as men’s singles champion Thursday night, surging past fellow countryman Brandon Nakashima 6-3, 7-6 (4) in a dominant display on centre court at IGA Stadium.

“Tennis-wise, this has been one of the best weeks of my life,” Shelton told a sold-out crowd post-match.

Shelton earned his second career ATP Masters 1000 title after winning last year’s event in Toronto. He moved up to sixth in the tour’s rankings and became the first men’s player to repeat at the Canadian Open since Rafael Nadal in 2019.

After digging deep with multiple third-set tiebreaks in Toronto, Shelton rocketed through the 2026 tournament without dropping a set.

“This week was a massive stepping-stone,” he told reporters at his press conference. “I would say even more than what I did in Toronto last year because of the way that I did it. I thought I was much more clinical, more focused. I was an elite returner at times.”

The 23-year-old was also untouchable on serve Thursday, striking the ball at 230 kilometres per hour without surrendering a break-point chance throughout a match that lasted one hour 27 minutes.

Nakashima, seeded 28th, won just 17 per cent of his return points in his first career final at the 1000 level.

“He’s been playing at an insane level, it really has been incredible to see his career so far,” the 25-year-old said of Shelton. “He’s going to be a top player for his whole career.”

Nakashima matched power for power in the second set, forcing a tiebreak after fighting back from 30-0 down with a mix of aces, sliced volleys and punishing forehands in the final game.

The two remained square until Shelton smacked a cross-court forehand to take a 4-2 advantage and held serve for a 6-3 lead. He made good on his second championship point in the second set, ripping a forehand down the line before flexing his muscles and sharing hugs with his team courtside.

“The way you win, for me, it also matters. Not just winning, but the way you do it,” he said. “I couldn’t be more happy with the way I did it this week. I thought tonight it was such a good display for me. The way that I moved on the court, the way I struck the ball, my serve and return.

“And then, yeah, ending the match on a fading backwards forehand winner down the line feels good.”

Shelton broke Nakashima in the first set to take a 4-3 lead, stepping up on his second serve and firing a forehand winner.

The big-serving lefty only elevated his play from there. After comfortably holding, Shelton relentlessly defended along the baseline and whipped a pair of blistering passing shots to break a second time and take the set in 32 minutes.

Nakashima started the match in dominant form on serve, striking four aces to take the first game, before Shelton solved him in the seventh.

“I’ve seen the way that he was playing this week,” Shelton said. “I watched the tape and he was serving lights out.”

Earlier, Brazil’s Rafael Matos and Orlando Luz defeated Croatia’s Mate Pavic and El Salvador’s Marcelo Arevalo in the men’s doubles final.

The 12-day, $9.42-million tournament drew a record attendance of 309,492 spectators despite having five sessions interrupted by rain and several marquee dropouts.

Top-ranked Jannik Sinner, No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz and 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic all missed the tournament, while Canadian hometown headliner Félix Auger-Aliassime withdrew with a back injury hours before his opening match.

Alexander Zverev, the top seed, was then bounced in the second round. Shelton became the highest seed from the round of 16 onward as youngsters Rafael Jodar, Joao Fonseca and Learner Tien made breakout runs.

Nakashima slid under the radar most of the event, quietly stacking wins away from the bright lights of centre court before taking down 19th-seeded Luciano Darderi in the quarterfinals and Jodar in the semis.

A lone tour title having come at the ATP 250 San Diego Open, he took a couple of shots at Toronto in jest during his on-court interview.

“I’m going to be honest, I really, really enjoy it here in Montreal more than Toronto,” he said, drawing a chorus of ‘Olé Olé’ chants. “I’m not just saying that, sitting here in the final today, but even before this week, I really enjoyed my time here.”

The men’s tournament, much to Nakashima’s disappointment, shifts to Toronto next year, while Montreal hosts the women’s event.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 13, 2026.