Ben Shelton’s current goal is to gradually regain his rhythm and rebuild his conditioning after returning from injury, ensuring he’s in peak shape for his ATP Finals debut, which now looks likely given his position in the Race to Turin. He took an encouraging step toward that objective by grinding out a tight three-set victory over Kamil Majchrzak, a match where he saved match points and showed both mental toughness and physical resilience in testing circumstances.
The American’s strong run, highlighted by a Wimbledon quarterfinal and the biggest title of his career at the Toronto Masters, hit a setback when he sustained an injury at his home Grand Slam in New York. The issue forced him to miss several events, including the Laver Cup, and his form dipped noticeably upon returning at the Shanghai Masters, where he suffered an early loss to David Goffin, casting doubt over his ATP Finals qualification hopes.
While maintaining his position in the Race to Turin is one of his key goals this week, an equally important task is defending the substantial ranking points he earned at this event in 2024. Last year, he made his tournament debut and entered as the title favorite but fell short in the final, unable to hold onto a one-set lead against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
Coming off an intense three-set clash with former world No. 1 Novak Djokovic at the Shanghai Masters, Jaume Munar opened the European indoor swing with a relatively straightforward first-round match against world No. 268 Remy Bertola. He made the most of the opportunity, wrapping up a 6-2, 6-4 victory to start his Basel campaign on a strong note.
The Spaniard has demonstrated significant improvement on non-clay surfaces this year, reaching a career-high ranking of No. 37. He has also become more competitive against top opponents, at one point holding a 5-2 record against top-20 players in 2025, including two wins over Ben Shelton. However, that record has since declined to 5-7 following five consecutive losses against top-20 opponents.
Head-to-head: Jaume Munar leads 2-1. With Ben Shelton now a noticeably less dangerous and more vulnerable version of the player Munar defeated twice earlier this year, the Spaniard has solid reasons to believe he can secure a third consecutive win in this matchup. However, Shelton’s survival in his opening match, aided by a bit of luck, points to positive signs. Coupled with his motivation to defend ranking points and maintain control in the Race to Turin, he could once again find a way through a challenging contest.