Ben Shelton defeated fellow American Brandon Nakashima 6-3, 7-6 (4) on Thursday, 14 August 2026, to win the National Bank Open in Montreal, successfully defending the Canadian title he first claimed a year ago. The victory gave the fifth-seeded Shelton his second consecutive ATP Masters 1000 crown and his fourth title of the 2026 season.
The final marked the first all-American men's singles final at Masters 1000 level since 2003, when Andy Roddick beat Mardy Fish in Cincinnati, according to a report from Nation Press. Shelton reached the final by beating Learner Tien 6-2, 6-3 in the semifinal, a result that snapped a two-match losing streak against Tien, while Nakashima booked his spot in his first Masters 1000 final by defeating Rafael Jodar 7-6(3), 6-4, according to . Shelton entered the title match ranked world No. 10 with Nakashima at No. 31, according to Sportskeeda, and the championship match was played at IGA Stadium in Montreal with a scheduled start of 8:00 PM EDT, according to Yardbarker.
How dominant was Shelton's title defence?
Shelton's triumph made him only the fourth man this century to win back-to-back Canadian titles, joining Rafael Nadal (2018-19), Novak Djokovic (2011-12) and Andy Murray (2009-10) on that list. He reflected on the achievement afterward.
For me to play the way that I played this week to go through this draw speaks to the work I have been putting in. It also speaks to my mental toughness, my ability to focus through everything that was going on this week.
Shelton finished the tournament having now won four titles in 2026 — Dallas, Munich, Stuttgart and now Montreal — and pushed his career record against Nakashima to a perfect 6-0, denying the 28th seed his first Masters 1000 title. Nakashima's only tour-level win remains a 2022 title in San Diego.
How did the final itself play out?
Shelton took the opening set in just 33 minutes, with neither man facing a break point through the first six games before he broke for a 4-3 lead and closed out the set with a second break. He finished the match with 22 winners against 12 unforced errors, while Nakashima produced 19 winners but 21 unforced errors.
Serving dominated the second set of the one-hour, 27-minute match, with no break points created by either player, forcing a tiebreaker that again favoured the servers. Shelton won his first point on Nakashima's serve to move ahead 4-2 in the tiebreak and ultimately sealed the match on Nakashima's own serve.
How does this fit into Shelton's recent form?
Shelton's Montreal win comes after a mixed stretch on other surfaces. He claimed the Stuttgart Open grass title with a win over Taylor Fritz on 14 June 2026, but was then eliminated in the first round of Wimbledon by Otto Virtanen in a five-set thriller on 30 June 2026. His Canadian Open defence therefore represents a return to hard-court form heading toward the US Open.
What happened elsewhere at the Cincinnati Open?
Play at the Cincinnati Open was disrupted by rain on the tournament's opening day, though Britain's Cameron Norrie still came through, beating Croatia's Dino Prizmic 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 in Mason, Ohio. Norrie overcame a 25-14 deficit in winners, converting two of three break points in the second set and capitalising on seven unforced errors from Prizmic before breaking serve in the seventh game of the decider to move ahead for good. Norrie now faces top-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany in the second round.
Norrie's win continues a recent upswing; he had already ended a six-match losing streak with victories at the Mifel Open over Aleksandar Kovacevic and by beating Ignacio Buse to reach the Canadian Open last 32 earlier this month.
Elsewhere in Cincinnati, Spain's Martin Landaluce snapped his own six-match losing streak by beating former world No. 4 Jack Draper 6-3, 7-5, despite hitting fewer winners (33-21) but roughly half as many unforced errors (24 against Draper's 47).
I think the important thing today was believing in my shots, believing in my game. I did some big misses at times but that's OK, because it is how I enjoy playing.
Other first-round winners included Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff, Argentina's Thiago Agustin Tirante, Canada's Denis Shapovalov, Serbia's Miomir Kecmanovic and Argentina's Mariano Navone. France's Terence Atmane advanced after Hungary's Marton Fucsovics retired.
What happens next?
With the Montreal title secured, Shelton adds a second straight Masters 1000 crown to his season's hard-court build-up ahead of the US Open, according to . Attention now turns to Cincinnati, where Norrie's second-round meeting with Zverev headlines the remaining draw.
- Shelton beat Nakashima 6-3, 7-6 (4) to win the National Bank Open in Montreal on 14 August 2026.
- It was Shelton's fourth title of 2026 and his second consecutive Canadian Open crown.
- The final was the first all-American Masters 1000 men's final since 2003.
- Shelton improved to 6-0 all-time against Nakashima, who was seeking his first Masters 1000 title.
- In Cincinnati, Cameron Norrie advanced to face top seed Alexander Zverev after beating Dino Prizmic.
