Casper Ruud has clinched his first win over a top 20 player at a hardcourt event since January after dismissing Learner Tien in straight sets at the Shanghai Masters.
Ruud, who is seeded 20th in the draw, battled to a 6-4, 7-6(3) victory without dropping serve and hit 34 winners against 22 unforced errors. Tien is the highest-ranked player he has beaten on a hardcourt since the United Cup, when he beat then-world No. 6 Alex de Minaur. In total, he has recorded six wins over top-20 players in 2026, with four of those victories on clay at the Italian Open.
“Today is arguably one of, if not the best, win for me this season,” Ruud said after beating the American.
“I think Learner is a great player who’s had tremendous success this last year or so.
“He’s one of the cleanest ball strikers, and given the circumstances, the situation, the surface, everything, I considered it a very good win for me.
“I haven’t been swimming in many match wins this year, so every match win is important here at the end of the year.”
The Norwegian is currently 30-17 this season and has been hampered by a back injury in recent weeks, which forced him to withdraw from the US Open. Until this week, Ruud hadn’t won back-to-back matches at a singles tournament since the French Open in May.
“I’ve had more breaks, let’s say, in the summer than maybe other players,” he admits.
“I feel like, hopefully, I can be fresh and ready for these last four or five tournaments.”
Ruud will take on Felix Auger-Aliassime in the last 16, who ousted Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 4-6, 6-1. The Canadian fourth seed is playing in only his fourth tournament since Wimbledon. In his opening match in Shanghai, he was also taken to three sets by Camilo Ugo Carabelli.
“I expect a tough one,” Auger-Aliassime said of facing Ruud.
“He’s one of those guys, when he’s locked in, he barely misses, and can hit huge off the forehand, so it’s going to be a good matchup.”
Tsitsipas’ ‘important win’
Two-time Grand Slam finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas was a set down before coming back to upset Taylor Fritz 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 and record his seventh win over a top 20 player this season. The Greek is through to the fourth round of a Masters event for only the second time this year after Madrid.
“It is a statement. It’s a great win, against a player who has earned his stripes on the highest level of the ATP Tour for many years now,” said Tsitsipas.
“He’s been there consistently playing the finals, and playing the biggest, going deep in the Masters 1000s and Grand Slam tournaments.
“So, for me it is an important win that I was able to capture today. I knew there were a lot of difficulties that were presented to me.”
Tsitsipas is a former semi-finalist in Shanghai, but that run was back in 2019 when he defeated Novak Djokovic. He has only reached one Masters 1000 quarter-final since the start of 2025.
Rafael Jodar has also reached the last 16 on his Shanghai debut. He ousted Jiri Lehecka 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-4. The Spaniard is the youngest player to reach the fourth round or better at five Masters 1000 events in the same year, since Djokovic in 2007.
“(My) first year on Tour, I’m aware that I’m gonna discover many things, new tournaments,” said Jodar.
“This is a great tournament, a great Masters 1000, and I’m enjoying my time here in Shanghai. “It’s a great place and a great venue to organise a tournament.”
