Shelton successfully defends National Bank Open title, beating Nakashima in an all-American final

MONTREAL (AP) — Ben Shelton successfully defended his National Bank Open title, beating Brandon Nakashima 6-3, 7-6 (4) in an all-American final Thursday night.

The fifth-seeded Shelton has seven career ATP Tour victories, also winning this year in Dallas, Munich and Stuttgart. He won the Canadian event last year in Toronto.

“Tennis-wise, this has been one of the best weeks of my life,” Shelton told the crowd. “I played some of the best tennis that I’ve ever played, and to be able to put that on display here in front of you has been an honor. So, thank you guys for bringing the energy all week.”

Shelton didn't drop a set in the tournament. The first repeat winner in Canada since Rafael Nadal in 2019, the 23-year-old left-hander will move up to sixth in the world ranking.

Shelton served at 142 mph without surrendering a break point throughout the match that lasted 1 hour, 27 minutes.

“He’s been playing at an insane level, it really has been incredible to see his career so far,” Nakashima said about Shelton. “He’s going to be a top player for his whole career.”

The 28th-seeded Nakashima won his lone tour title in 2022 in San Diego.

In the doubles final, Brazil’s Rafael Matos and Orlando Luz edged Croatia’s Mate Pavic and El Salvador’s Marcelo Arevalo 5-7, 6-4, 10-6.

See AP’s full tennis coverage here

Ben Shelton of the United States hoists the trophy following his win over compatriot Brandon Nakashima during final tennis action at the National Bank Open in Montreal on Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Brandon Nakashima of the United States hits a return to Ben Shelton during final tennis action at the National Bank Open in Montreal on Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Brandon Nakashima of the United States hits a return to his compatriot Ben Shelton during final tennis match of the National Bank Open in Montreal, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Ben Shelton of the United States reacts during his match against compatriot Brandon Nakashima during the final tennis match of the National Bank Open in Montreal, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Ben Shelton of the United States hits a return to his compatriot Brandon Nakashima during the final tennis match of the National Bank Open in Montreal, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Ben Shelton of the United States reacts during his match against compatriot Brandon Nakashima during the final tennis match of the National Bank Open in Montreal, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The yearslong case against six Nevada Republicans who were accused of submitting a bogus certificate that falsely declared Donald Trump the winner of the state’s 2020 presidential election has been dismissed, a judge ruled Thursday.

The dismissal marks the latest setback in swing states’ efforts to prosecute fake electors who tried to keep Trump in the White House after he lost to Joe Biden in 2020.

Three other fake elector cases in Arizona, Michigan and Georgia have been dismissed. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes recently dismissed her office’s criminal case but vowed to bring it back to a grand jury in hopes of securing another indictment. The dismissal was a legal maneuver aimed at getting around a deadline for starting new grand jury proceedings after Mayes lost an appeal earlier in June.

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, who is also running for governor as a Democrat, brought charges relating to forgery and “offering a false instrument for filing or record” against the six Nevada Republicans, who pleaded not guilty.

His office plans to appeal the ruling.

The defendants included Michael McDonald, the chair of the Nevada Republican Party, and Jesse Law, the former chair of the Clark County Republican Party.

In a Thursday statement, McDonald’s defense attorney Richard Wright called the attorney general’s plans to appeal “hasty” and “premature” and said continuing the case was politically motivated.

After the 2020 election, the six Republican electors gathered outside of the Nevada Legislature to sign a certificate giving the state’s six electoral votes to Trump, despite Biden winning the state by more than 30,000 votes. The ceremony was broadcast online, and the video footage was used as evidence in the case.

The case has revolved around the defendants’ intent behind submitting the certificate.

Prosecutors argue the defendants intended for their documents to be mistaken for actual electoral votes that then-Vice President Mike Pence would count on Jan. 6, 2021.

The defendants say submitting the certificate was an act of “political theater” designed to publicize their concerns about the election. They were preserving their rights to challenge the official election results and had no intent to deceive a government agency into accepting the GOP certificate as real, their attorneys argued.

Nevada Judge Mary Kay Holthus agreed.

She found there was a lack of evidence that showed the electors intended to deceive government officials, and she determined that the state failed to disclose exculpatory evidence to the grand jury.

“The fact that Defendants openly announced both their actions and their asserted purpose, rather than concealing their conduct or attempting to secretly induce governmental reliance, weighs against a reasonable inference that they acted with fraudulent intent,” Holthus wrote in her ruling.

Jurisdiction had also been an issue, but the case eventually landed in Clark County, which is home to Las Vegas and leans Democratic.

The case was originally scheduled for a trial in Nevada's capital of Carson City, but the attorney general's office voluntarily dismissed the case to pursue it instead in Southern Nevada, which leans more Democratic.

Courts have dismissed similar cases in Michigan and Georgia, and a special prosecutor dropped a federal case in late 2024 that charged Trump with conspiring to overturn the 2020 election. Those cases ended after Trump defeated Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024. A fake electors case is ongoing in Wisconsin.

FILE - Nevada GOP chair Michael McDonald walks on stage before speaking ahead of Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump at a campaign event, Jan. 27, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)