Arthur Fils, Ben Shelton Seal quarter finals berths in Auckland

Arthur Fils moved on a quarter finals finish in Hong Kong last week to improve to his solid start to the year by easing past Nuno Borges 6-2, 6-0 at the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand on Wednesday and reached the last eight.

The 19-year-old Frenchman who played his maiden ATP Head2Head meeting with the World No. 66 Nuno Borges needed just 52 minutes to record a win over the Portuguese in Auckland.

Fils, who advanced to the final of the 2023 Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah last month, defeated Borges by converting five of his seven earned break points and dropping just six points when serving.

The sixth seed is now into his first-ever consecutive ATP Tour quarterfinal after making it to the final eight in Hong Kong last week.

Daniel Altmaier, who defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime, the fourth seed, 7-6(9), 7-5, will be his next opponent in New Zealand.

The win prevented the Canadian from having a successful start to the year. In his first tour-level matchup with Auger-Aliassime, Altmaier saved four set points before winning a lengthy first-set tie-break that put him on track for a two-hour, 35-minute victory.

Joining Fils is Ben Shelton. The 21-year-old American got up and running after notching his first win of the new season on Wednesday where he overcame Fabian Marozsan 6-3, 6-4 to also book his place in the quarter finals.

Shelton, who was seeded number one in his first-ever ATP Tour match, bounced back from a first-game serve break to win in 71 minutes of play in the second round.

Alejandro Tabilo, Taro Daniel, and Alexandre Muller all secured quarterfinal spots on Wednesday. Muller defeated third-seeded Francisco Cerundolo 6-1, 6-1, and Daniel defeated eighth-seeded Max Purcell 6-2, 6-4 in his next round.

Chilean preliminary Tabilo advanced to face either Luca Van Assche or Cameron Norrie, the 2023 finalist, after defeating Botic van de Zandschulp 7-5, 6-3.