In the match taking place at the Central court at Indian Wells Tennis Garden (California, USA), Tien defeated his compatriot with a score of 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-3 after more than two hours of competition.
Despite facing one of the players with the strongest serve on the ATP Tour, Learner Tien showed superior efficiency in serve games. The 20-year-old player launched 15 aces, almost double Shelton's 8 aces, and also won 82% of the points when serving first.
Ben Shelton entered the match with not really good physical condition, which had been revealed from the previous round. However, the player currently ranked 8th in the world still created a stalemate in the first two sets. The turning point of the match came in the decisive set, when Tien got the only break in the sixth game to create an advantage before closing the victory.
It's great to be in the fourth round of a Masters 1000 tournament right at home. Shelton is a very strong opponent and has played his best. I am very happy with this result," Learner Tien shared after the match.
This victory also helps Tien increase his head-to-head record with Shelton to 2-0, after defeating his compatriot on grass courts in Mallorca last year. The American player is expected to increase 4 places to 23rd place in the ATP rankings and will face 18th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the next round.
In another notable match, Alexander Zverev defeated Brandon Nakashima with a score of 7-6(2), 5-7, 6-4 to qualify for the fourth round. The German player also became the first person to reach the milestone of 100 wins at ATP Masters 1000 tournaments in this decade.
Zverev will face 21st seed Frances Tiafoe in the next round, while he is aiming for the goal of participating in the Indian Wells semi-finals for the first time after stopping in the quarterfinals twice.
Meanwhile, Jannik Sinner continued to show stable form when defeating Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the fourth round. The Italian player maintained his record of reaching the top 16 strongest players in all five participations at Indian Wells.
Sinner currently has 96 wins in the ATP Masters 1000 system, equaling the record of compatriot Fabio Fognini. The 24-year-old tennis player is aiming for his first Indian Wells title in his career, after stopping in the semi-finals twice in 2023 and 2024.
If he continues to go deep, Sinner is likely to reunite with Carlos Alcaraz - who defeated him in the Indian Wells semi-finals in the last two seasons.
