Thursday’s late-afternoon match on Grandstand at the Cincinnati Open pairs two contrasting threats: Ben Shelton, riding a surge of momentum, and Jiri Lehecka, the Czech with a habit of taking down top players.

Shelton arrives in Cincinnati as the world No. 6 and on an eight-match winning streak after capturing the biggest title of his career in Toronto last week. The American has won 15 of his last 17 matches and is one victory away from reaching the quarterfinals at back-to-back Masters 1000 events for the first time in his career. The match is scheduled to begin at an estimated 4:30 p.m. ET, Thursday, August 14.

Lehecka, ranked No. 26, brings proven scalps and the capacity to unsettle higher-ranked opponents. He owns eight career wins over Top 10 players, including three this season: victories over Grigor Dimitrov in Brisbane, Carlos Alcaraz in Doha and Jack Draper at Queen’s Club. Those results underline his ability to produce high-level tennis on different surfaces and against varied styles.

The players met once earlier this year in the Stuttgart quarterfinals, where Shelton prevailed 6-4, 6-4. That match was dominated by Shelton’s serve: 18 aces to three double faults, a spotless first-serve record (28/28), and the American never faced a break point or was pushed to deuce in 10 service games.

The matchup sets up as a clash between Shelton’s serving firepower and Lehecka’s track record against elite opponents. On paper, Shelton’s recent form and serving numbers make him a formidable favourite, but Lehecka’s history of Top-10 wins this year suggests he can produce the shots and momentum swings necessary to alter the script. The outcome will likely hinge on whether Lehecka can disrupt Shelton’s serve and whether Shelton can sustain the serving level that decided their previous meeting.

Carlos Alcaraz advanced to the Cincinnati Open quarter-finals with a straight-sets win over Luca Nardi, producing what he called his best performance of the event so far.

The world No 2 beat the 98th-ranked Italian, a 22-year-old competing as a lucky loser, 6-1, 6-4 in the last 16 of the Masters 1000 tournament. Alcaraz broke Nardi twice to take the opening set and then recovered from 2-4 down in the second to reel off four successive games and close out the match.

Alcaraz landed 65% of his first serves, won 83% of first-serve points and 56% of second-serve points. He finished with 10 winners and 10 unforced errors. He had earlier defeated Damir Dzumhur and Hamad Medjedovic in his first two matches in Cincinnati.

“I think this match was the best so far for me in this tournament,” he said in his on-court interview. “At the beginning of the tournament, I just really wanted to get better every day, after every practice and every match.

“I think I’m doing it, which I’m really proud about. I’m just really happy with the way I felt the ball today and the way that I moved.”

Asked about balancing on-court preparation with time off, Alcaraz added: “Well, I just try to take care of both things. It depends, without balance, everything is a mess.

“I think both things are really important to be fresh mentally and to come back to court with the feeling that you really want to have battles, to practice and then to get ready for the tournaments. I think a balance of both is important.”

The victory sends Alcaraz into his third quarter-final in Cincinnati, after runs to the last eight in 2022 and 2023, his best previous result being a runner-up finish in 2023. The 22-year-old has 27 wins in his last 28 matches and is on a 14-match winning streak at ATP Masters 1000 level, a run that includes his titles in Rome and Monte Carlo.

Since Masters events began in 1990, Alcaraz is only the third player to win 14 successive matches at this level before turning 23, following Pete Sampras and Rafael Nadal. He will meet world No 11 Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals.

The first quarterfinal at the Cincinnati Open pairs world No. 1 Jannik Sinner against world No. 28 Felix Auger-Aliassime. Estimated start time is 3:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, August 14.

Sinner arrives with heavy momentum. He is on a 10-match winning streak on tour, a run that includes seven victories en route to the Wimbledon title and three wins so far in Cincinnati. He also carries a 24-match winning streak on hard courts, having not lost on the surface since last October.

Auger-Aliassime enters with a perfect head-to-head record against Sinner, leading 2-0. Both meetings occurred in 2022: a 6-1, 6-2 win in the third round of Madrid and a three-set win here in Cincinnati, 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-1.

The 2022 Cincinnati match is recalled for its dramatic swing. Sinner led by a set and a break at 6-2, 4-2 and had a point to serve for a 6-2, 5-2 lead. After losing that break he held double match point with Auger-Aliassime serving at 5-6, 15-40 in the second set. Auger-Aliassime then won 11 of the next 12 points to take the set and went on to win the third set decisively.