Shelton overcomes upset bid at ATP 500

Rafael Jodar’s breakthrough season is showing no signs of slowing down.

Competing for the first time since Wimbledon, the 19-year-old Spaniard advanced to the second round at the Mubadala DC Open in Washington on Tuesday, when he defeated 22-year-old Arthur Fils 7-6(5), 6-3 in a clash between two of the hottest young players on Tour.

Jodar is making his debut in Washington but played college tennis at the University of Virginia, just a three-hour drive from where the ATP 500 event is held. In the hot conditions, Jodar played with great intensity and sealed victory when World No. 22 Fils mishit a forehand.

“It is my first time playing here and I knew the conditions would be tough, especially playing during the day. I did a great job handling it,” Jodar said. “There are many people from Virginia who came to watch my match and I am very grateful for everything they did and are still doing a great job and supporting me in all the tournaments I am playing around the world.”

The 19-year-old Jodar is competing at No. 24 in the PIF ATP Rankings this week, having started the season outside the Top 100. Jodar lifted his first tour-level trophy on clay in Marrakech in April and advanced to the quarter-finals at Roland Garros.

His best result on hard courts in 2026 was a third-round run from qualifying at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami. Jodar is now level with Fils at 1-1 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series and will next meet Kei Nishikori.

Earlier, Kamil Majchrzak earned his fifth Top 30 win of the season, defeating World No. 21 Tommy Paul 7-5, 7-6(4). The 30-year-old is just the third Pole to win a match in Washington, joining Hubert Hurkacz and Wojtek Fibak. Majchrzak will next meet third seed Taylor Fritz.

Paul was in action for the first time since he married longtime partner Paige Lorenze earlier this month. Fritz, Reilly Opelka and Frances Tiafoe were part of the wedding party, while others at the festivities included Ethan Quinn, John Isner, Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson.

 

Watch highlights of Majchrzak's win against Paul:

Ugo Humbert also scored a win at the ATP 500 hard-court event, downing American qualifier Andres Martin 6-2, 7-5. Humbert will play second seed Ben Shelton or another American qualifier, Martin Damm, in the second round. Adrian Mannarino overcame fifth seed Learner Tien 7-5, 6-4, while Alex Michelsen, who won an ATP Challenger title on Sunday, beat Mackenzie McDonald 6-4, 7-5. Seventh seed Jakub Mensik survived a scare from American qualifier Trevor Svajda 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-3.

 

Watch highlights of Mannarino's win against Tien:

In the final ATP match of the day on Stadium Court, World No. 8 Ben Shelton overcame a break deficit in the third set to advance 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 over fellow American Martin Damm Jr. The second seed Shelton staved off a pesky upset bid from the fellow left-hander Damm, staying patient through a rain delay and ultimately prevailing to book his spot in the second round.

Shelton has reached two consecutive semi-finals in Washington and will continue his campaign against another left-hander in Ugo Humbert next.