ATP Estados Unidos Copa Davis 2026 Ben Shelton Jiri Lehecka Learner Tien

Shelton loses both his singles matches and the United States is out of the Davis Cup

Fernando Murciego - 19 Sep 2026
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Shelton loses both of his singles matches and the United States is out of the Davis Cup. Source: Getty

United States misses out on the Final Phase of the Davis Cup 2026. The Czech Republic pulled off a major surprise this Saturday in the fifth and decisive point of the tie held in Prague, after Jiří Lehecka defeated Learner Tien by 6-3 and 7-5. The North American team once had the ticket in their hands but ended up watching it slip away in the last match.

The tie had started with Tien pulling off a surprise against Jakub Mensik, putting the United States ahead, but Lehecka responded by defeating Ben Shelton. On Saturday, the American team regained the advantage with a win in doubles and had everything going their way when Shelton stepped onto the court for the fourth point.

But the recent US Open finalist could not complete his mission. After playing the final in New York just a few days prior, Shelton lost to Mensik by 5-7, 6-4, and 6-3. The result left the tie tied at two and forced Tien to stake the entire season on the fifth point.

Shelton's effort goes unrewarded

Shelton's presence in Prague already had considerable merit. The American arrived in Europe just a few days after reaching the US Open final, where he lost to Alexander Zverev, to immediately make himself available to Bob Bryan's team. The USTA had highlighted that he arrived at the tie as the world number four after reaching the final in New York.

However, fatigue and the change of scenery ended up taking their toll. Shelton lost both of his singles matches over the weekend, and his effort ended without collective reward. He also ended up missing out on his first Davis Cup victory. Before this tie, he had already lost both of his matches in 2024, starting this series with a record of 0-2 in singles.

Lehecka was the one who put the final point. The Czech responded when the pressure was highest and closed out the tie against Tien; the Czech Republic will be in the Final Phase in November in Bologna.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Shelton pierde sus dos partidos individuales y Estados Unidos se queda fuera de la Copa Davis