Ben Shelton wins red clay and European debuts to set Estoril clash with Dominic Thiem

Coming into Tuesday, Dominic Thiem had played 217 tour-level matches on clay. Ben Shelton had contested zero.

Both players were among the group advancing at the Millennium Estoril Open in setting an intriguing second-round meeting.

For Thiem, he’ll hope this is the start of a new trend after coming in with a 1-8 record overall this season that includes three successive losses on clay during February's Golden Swing in South America. The holder of 10 ATP clay-court crowns, the 29-year-old battled back to defeat countryman Sebastian Ofner, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

“Never easy to plays someone you also like off the court and you practice a lot the whole offseason together. There are no surprises between us,” Thiem said in an on-court interview.

The 111th-ranked Thiem was down a set and a break before digging in to scrape past the world No. 122 after two hours and five minutes. Six double faults and a five for 16 success rate on break points will be among the areas Thiem will look to improve upon against the eighth-seeded Shelton come Thursday.

The 20-year-old American, who accepted a wild card into the 250-level event, won his debut on red dirt and European soil by overcoming Constant Lestienne, 7-5, 7-5. Shelton saved a set point at 4-5 in the opener with a serve out wide that was followed by a sneak forward to close a drop volley winner. In both sets, Shelton broke the Frenchman at 5-5 and shut the door in the ensuing game.

“I’m really happy to be here in Portugal. I’m really enjoying my time here,” said Shelton, who played doubles Monday with Portugal’s Duarte Vale, his roommate at the University of Florida (the two lost to Thiem and Joao Sousa, 6-4, 6-2). “It’s a beautiful place, beautiful city.

“This is the first city that I’ve been in in Europe, but so far, it’s definitely my favorite,” he closed with a laugh.

Sixth seed Miomir Kecmanovic also moved through his opener, dismissing Luca Nardi, 6-4, 6-1.