Ben Shelton said he had laid down a clay court marker for US men with his Munich Open win on Sunday after the world No 6 became the first American to claim an event above the ATP 250 level since Andre Agassi's 2002 Rome Masters triumph.
Shelton d. Flavio Cobolli 6-2 7-5
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) April 19, 2026
Ben is the Munich Champ
The 1st American man to win a clay title above ATP 250 level since Andre Agassi in Rome 2002
✅5th title
✅2nd title on clay
After losing in the final last year, he came back with a vengeance 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/8Ll4CfRnzX
Shelton's 6-2 7-5 win over Flavio Cobolli also made him the fifth American this century to bag a claycourt title outside the United States, joining Agassi, Andy Roddick, Sam Querrey and Sebastian Korda.
The 23-year-old said the "huge" triumph underlined his ambitions before the French Open, which begins on May 24.
"Moving forward I have big ambitions for the claycourts, a surface I want to get better on each year. It's become one of my favourite surfaces to play on," Shelton said.
While the American women have had plenty of success on the sport's slowest surface, with Coco Gauff winning the French Open crown last year, the attention will now turn to whether the US men can leave their own mark in Paris.
“To have people who dedicate their lives to helping me is something I don’t take for granted.” 🗣️
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) April 19, 2026
Ben Shelton shares a moment with his father and team after winning the Munich title.#BMWOpenbybitpanda pic.twitter.com/h6t5bYfLih
With Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe making the Roland Garros quarterfinals last year, Shelton said things were looking up as American men aim to end a Grand Slam drought going back to 2003 when Roddick won the hardcourt US Open.
"Success on clay is coming back," he added.
"I'm looking forward to being part of this progression of US men's tennis on clay.
"On the women's side, they have a lockdown as they won the French Open last year. We as men have some more to do but we're heading in the right direction."