Another Australian Open quarter-final shows 23-year-old American, in his fourth full season, is trending in the right direction
Ben Shelton put together another deep run at the Australian Open this year, reaching the quarter-finals for a third time on just his fourth appearance in Melbourne.
The 23-year-old American fell to the defending champion and world No 2 Jannik Sinner in straight sets for the ninth time in 10 meetings. In their first-ever encounter at the Shanghai Masters in 2023, Shelton came back from a set down to win in three – 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(5). The head-to-head may now read 9-1 in the Italian’s favour, but Shelton’s record at the Grand Slams really stands up, especially in Australia.
Speaking after his last-eight exit, Shelton said: “I think my level is better and I’m getting better and better and becoming a lot less limited. This game takes time and the results don’t always come when you want them.
“I’m getting to the point now where I’m getting stopped up by the toughest challenge in the game for the most part. I do think I’m close to bringing it all together.”
He certainly is “getting better” and his fast acsension up the rankings speaks to that. After turning pro in 2022, Shelton made his Australian Open debut in 2023. Then ranked 89 in the world, the big-serving lefty was halted in the quarter-finals by fellow American Tommy Paul in four sets. Paul was the 35th-ranked player in the world at the time.
In 2024, Shelton was a top-20 player headed into the first major of the year following a semi-final run at the US Open in 2023. Seeded for the first time at a Grand Slam in just his second appearance Down Under, Shelton fell in the third round to fellow lefty Adrian Mannarino in five sets.
The 2025 Australian Open laid the foundations for what turned out to be a career-year for Shelton. After seeing off Brandon Nakashima in the first round, Pablo Carreño Busta in round two, Lorenzo Musetti in the third round, Gaël Monfils in round four and Lorenzo Sonego in the quarters, Sinner, the eventual champion that year, ended the American’s hopes in the semis.
Shelton went on to carve out a strong year on tour following his exploits in Melbourne. He made his top-10 debut, won his first-ever Masters 1000 crown in Toronto, comfortably made the top-eight cut for the ATP Tour Finals and reached a career-high No 5 in the world rankings when it was all said and done.
Currently embarking on his fourth full season on the ATP Tour, Shelton has shown he is a fast learner. The 2022 NCAA men’s singles champion with the University of Florida was asked about the upward trend of college players after taking out 30th seed Valentin Vacherot, who attended Texas A&M University, in the third round. His answer was emphatic.
“College players are dogs for the most part,” he said. “Going into a college team, if you think everything is about you, life is not going to be fun and the guys on the team aren’t going to like you. I think that it definitely builds character.”
That “dog” and “character” Shelton speaks of refers to the will to win college players on both tours often demonstrate, as well as an unrelenting desire to compete. Shelton exemplifies those traits every time he steps on the court, no matter who the opponent and it continues to serve him well.
Coached by his father Bryan, a former top-60 player before going on to become a championship-winning college coach, Shelton is recognised as one of the realistic contenders to the (Carlos) Alcaraz-Sinnner monopoly at the top of men’s tennis, and the American is confident his time will come.
“I think it's just going to take that one time where I do it [beat Sinner at a major] to kind of get me over the hump,” Shelton said. “It's always been that way for me. It's a matter of time and work just trying to put all the pieces together, because I'm not complete yet, but I feel myself becoming more complete.”
The rest of the tour has been warned.
Words by Eugene