Carlos Alcaraz found a way to win his fourth round clash with Ben Shelton winning 7-6(8) 6-3 4-6 6-4.
The defending champion is into the quarter-finals in Paris once again after a four set win over the American.
Shelton had his chances in the opening set but was ultimately beaten by a consistently better Alcaraz.
Next in the quarter-finals for Alcaraz is Tommy Paul after Paul defeated Alexei Popyrin in straight sets.
In the first set both players traded blows as Shelton was confident from the baseline as he was getting the best of the forehand battles.
It was Alcaraz who had the first break point but Shelton managed to produce some bold patterns of play to save break point and hold for 4-3.
Neither player managed to find any clear and creative solutions with the first set going to a tiebreak.
It was Shelton who had three set points in the tiebreak but was too passive in order to take advantage of the situation.
There was some bold play from Alcaraz in big moments and it was his high percentage play that managed to turn the set around in his favour as he edged the tiebreak 10-8.
In the second set Alcaraz had to once again prevent Shelton from breaking as the American’s frustrations were building.
Six break points were saved from Alcaraz as the Spaniard managed to step up his game when it mattered most.
There was very minimal effect from Shelton on return after that although the American was very efficient on serve with the wide serving proving pivotal.
However, it was Alcaraz who was more consistent on return and a break to love in the eighth game was the crucial blow with the defending champion taking a two set lead.
The third set saw Shelton finally get rewarded for his consistently aggressive stance on the match as he broke in the fourth game for a 3-1 lead.
Although Alcaraz broke immediately back, the world number 13 remained a constant threat on return and a lucky net cord created two break points for the American.
On the second time of asking Shelton broke for a second time in the set and sealed the third set.
Momentum was with Shelton and the American continued his incredible level of play in the fourth set, forcing Alcaraz to his very limits.
It was a crucial break in the third game that all but sealed victory for Alcaraz as a forehand winner secured the Spaniard’s place in the quarter-finals.
After the match Alcaraz admitted he was angry at some points in the match but managed to calm himself down, “Honestly, today I fought against myself in the mind. I just tried to calm myself – in some moments i was mad,” Alcaraz was quoted by the BBC Sport website as saying in his on-court interview.
“I was angry with myself, talking not good things. Happy that I didn’t let that thought play against me. I tried to calm myself and tried to keep going. That’s what I tried.”
In the quarter-finals Alcaraz will face Tommy Paul which the Spaniard has a 4-2 head-to-head record.
