Ben Shelton

For the former baseball player, see Ben Shelton (baseball).

Ben Shelton

Shelton at the 2023 Monte-Carlo Masters
Country (sports)	United States
Residence	Gainesville, Florida, US
Born	(2002-10-09) October 9, 2002 (age 21) Atlanta, Georgia, US
Height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) [1]
Turned pro	2022
Plays	Left-handed (two-handed backhand)
College	Florida
Coach	Bryan Shelton, Dean Goldfine (traveling coach) [2]
Prize money	US$3,417,837
Singles
Career record	44–34 (56.4%) [lower-alpha 1]
Career titles	2
Highest ranking	No. 14 (8 April 2024)
Current ranking	No. 14 (8 April 2024) [1]
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	QF (2023)
French Open	1R (2023)
Wimbledon	2R (2023)
US Open	SF (2023)
Doubles
Career record	14–18 (43.8%) [lower-alpha 1]
Career titles	0
Highest ranking	No. 79 (19 February 2024)
Current ranking	No. 91 (8 April 2024) [1]
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	1R (2024)
French Open	2R (2023)
Wimbledon	1R (2023)
US Open	2R (2022)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
US Open	SF (2023)
Last updated on: 11 April 2024.

Benjamin Todd Shelton ^[3] (born October 9, 2002) is an American professional tennis player. Shelton has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 14 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), achieved on April 8, 2024. He has a career-high ATP doubles ranking of No. 79 achieved on February 19, 2024.

Shelton won the 2016 USTA junior national championship in doubles. He played college tennis for the Florida Gators. As a true freshman in 2021, he clinched the Gators’ first team national championship with his victory at fifth singles; the following year, he won the men's singles title at the 2022 NCAA Division I Tennis Championships. That same year, he was named the ITA National Player of the Year. ^[4]

He made his ATP Tour debut in July 2022 at the Atlanta Open where he defeated Ramkumar Ramanathan. The next week, he played in the Cincinnati Masters reaching the third round highlighted by a win over world No. 5 Casper Ruud. In August 2022, Shelton announced he would turn professional. In January 2023, Shelton reached the quarterfinals of just his second major tournament, the 2023 Australian Open. Later that year, he improved to reach the semifinals of another major at the 2023 US Open, and won his first title in Tokyo.

Early and personal life

Shelton is the son of former professional tennis player and Florida Gators men's tennis coach Bryan Shelton. ^[5] His mother, Lisa Witsken Shelton, was also a highly-ranked junior tennis player, and his uncle, Todd Witsken, was a professional tennis player. His sister, Emma, played college tennis at Florida. ^[6] Shelton was born in Atlanta, Georgia, as his father was the then-coach of Georgia Tech's women's tennis team. ^[7] He currently lives in Gainesville, Florida and graduated from Buchholz High School. ^[8]

Junior career

As a child, Shelton did not want to play tennis and, instead, played football. ^[6] Despite both of his parents having connections to the game of tennis, they did not pressure him to play the sport. ^[6] At age 12, Shelton began playing tennis regularly and was coached by his father, Bryan, who at the time was a college tennis coach. ^[2]

When Shelton turned 16, he considered playing ITF Junior tournaments abroad, but his father urged him not to do so saying: "Why do you need to travel abroad when you're not the best [player in the U.S.]?" ^[2] Shelton ultimately credits his father's advice not to play ITF Junior tournaments abroad as helping his tennis development because he was not constantly traveling and instead had a routine. ^[2]

Shelton peaked at a high of the No. 3 player in the USTA Boys’ 18s division and No. 306 ITF Junior. ^[8] He was a finalist at the 2020 USTA Boys 18s Singles Winter Nationals and won the 2019 USTA Boys 16s Doubles Clay Court tournament. ^[8]

College career

Shelton in 2021

In June 2020, on Father's Day, Shelton committed to play collegiate tennis for the Florida Gators, under his father, head coach Bryan Shelton. ^[9] A finance major, Shelton mostly played No. 5 singles as a freshman in 2020–21 and had an overall record of 28–5. ^[8] He helped the Gators win the Southeastern Conference (SEC) regular season title, and he won the championship-clinching match at the 2021 NCAA Championships, securing Florida's first national title. ^[8]

In 2021–22, Shelton shone during his second year, going 37–5 in singles matches (including 14–2 in the No. 1 spot). ^[8] He won the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-American Championships in the fall without dropping a set. ^[8] He helped Florida defend their SEC title and win the SEC Tournament Championship. ^[8] At the end of the season, Shelton won the 2022 NCAA Singles Championship over August Holmgren and finished the season as the nation's top-ranked player. ^{[8] [7]} He was named SEC Player of the Year and National Player of the Year. ^[8]

Shelton was slated to return to Florida for his junior year in 2022–23 and said he wanted to complete his finance degree. ^[7] Shortly after his successful run at the 2022 Cincinnati Masters, Shelton announced he would forego his remaining college eligibility to turn professional and continue his college education online. ^{[10] [2]}

Professional career

2022: Main tour debut, Challenger titles, first top-5 win

At the Georgia's Rome Challenger in July, Shelton reached his first Challenger final, losing to Wu Yibing. ^[11] The next week at the Indy Challenger, he reached the semi-finals, highlighted by a win over world No. 103 Tim van Rijthoven.

He made his ATP Tour debut at the Atlanta Open as a wildcard, and in the first round he defeated Ramkumar Ramanathan for his first ATP win. ^[12] He lost his next match to the No. 2 seed John Isner in three sets. ^[13] Shelton received a wildcard entry into the Cincinnati Masters. In the first round, he defeated world No. 56 Lorenzo Sonego in three sets for his first win over a top-100 player. ^[14] In the 2nd round, Shelton faced world No. 5 Casper Ruud in his first matchup against a top-10 opponent. Shelton defeated Ruud, in straight sets, by a score of 6–3, 6–3 for his first top-10 win. ^[15]

Shelton at the 2022 US Open

On August 23, 2022, Shelton announced he would not return to college and would turn professional. ^{[16] [17]} He announced that he would be represented by agent Alessandro Sant Albano, who is a part of Roger Federer's TEAM8 management firm. ^[2]

He also received a wildcard to appear in the main draw for his Grand Slam debut at the US Open on August 14. ^[18] He lost in the first round, in five sets, to Nuno Borges while also recording the second fastest serve of the US Open tournament at 149 miles per hour (240 km/h) in this match. ^[19] He also competed in doubles having paired with fellow American Christopher Eubanks. They were eliminated in the second round after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas and Petros Tsitsipas in the first round.

He reached his third Challenger final of the year at the 2022 Tiburon Challenger after defeating top seed Denis Kudla. As a result, he moved into the top 160 in the rankings on October 10, 2022. He advanced to his fourth Challenger final at the Charlottesville Men's Pro Challenger where he defeated his doubles' partner Christopher Eubanks to secure his first Challenger title. As a result he moved into the top 150 in the rankings at world No. 128 on November 7. ^[20] His fifth Challenger final featured a repeat of his last with a win against Christopher Eubanks in the Knoxville Challenger which lifted him another 20 positions up to No. 108 in the rankings on November 14. After winning his third straight title at the Champaign–Urbana Challenger, he debuted in the top 100 of the rankings ending the year at world No. 97 on November 21, 2022 and became the youngest player in ATP Challenger Tour history to win three titles in three weeks. He was also the youngest American in the Top 250. ^{[21] [22]}

2023: First Major semifinal, first ATP title, top 15

Shelton at the 2023 Miami Open

On his debut at the 2023 Australian Open, Shelton reached the fourth round, with wins against Zhang Zhizhen, Nicolás Jarry, and Alexei Popyrin. ^[23] This was only Shelton's second Grand Slam after the 2022 US Open. ^[24] Next he defeated compatriot J. J. Wolf to reach the quarterfinal of a Major for the first time in his career. ^[25] His run concluded with a four-set loss to fellow American Tommy Paul. As a result, he moved 45 positions up into the top 50, at world No. 44, for the first time in his career. ^{[26] [27]}

In the beginning of the American hard court season for 2023, Shelton faced a tough start, experiencing defeat in the opening round at the 2023 Delray Beach Open, losing in straight sets to Marcos Giron. His struggles continued at the Mexican Open, where he once again fell in the first round, this time to the fourth-seeded Holger Rune, in a match that stretched to three sets. However, Shelton managed to bounce back at Indian Wells, securing a victory over Fabio Fognini in the initial round, only to be bested by fellow American Taylor Fritz in the second round.

At the 2023 US Open Shelton made it to his first Grand Slam semifinal, ^[28] where he lost in straight sets to second seed and eventual champion Novak Djokovic. As a result he reached the top 20 in the rankings at world No. 19 on 11 September 2023. ^[29]

At the 2023 Rolex Shanghai Masters he reached the quarterfinals of a Masters 1000 for the first time defeating fourth seed Jannik Sinner for the second biggest win of his career. ^[30] He reached his maiden final and won his maiden title at the 2023 Japan Open Tennis Championships defeating qualifier Taro Daniel, Jordan Thompson, fifth seed Tommy Paul, qualifier Marcos Giron and Aslan Karatsev. ^[31] He became the sixth first-time ATP champion in the season and as a result reached the top 15 in the singles rankings on 23 October 2023. ^{[32] [33] [34]}

2024: First clay court title, American No. 1

At the 2024 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships he reached his first quarterfinal on clay courts defeating Zizou Bergs, ^[35] and his first semifinal defeating compatriot Brandon Nakashima. Next he defeated fourth seed Tomás Martín Etcheverry to reach his first clay court final. He won his second career title and first on clay becoming the youngest champion since Andy Roddick in 2002, defeating third seed Frances Tiafoe in the first African-American men’s singles tennis final in the Open Era. ^{[36] [37] [38]} As a result he reached a new career-high singles ranking of world No. 14 on 8 April 2024 and became the American No. 1 player ahead of Taylor Fritz on 15 April 2024. ^[39]

Endorsements

As of March 2023, Shelton is sponsored by On for clothing and shoes and Yonex for racquets. ^{[40] [41]} On January 14, 2024, Shelton announced his partnership with Rolex. ^[42]

Playing style

Shelton's best weapon is his serve. He has the ability to hit a big first serve, which averages 126 miles per hour (203 km/h). ^[7] At the US Open in 2023, he hit two service aces at 149.0 miles per hour (239.8 km/h) in the same game. He additionally hit a serve at 150.0 miles per hour (241.4 km/h) during the 2024 Indian Wells tournament. He also can produce a significant amount of kick on both first and second serves. ^[7] A left-handed player, Shelton is powerful and consistent on both the forehand and backhand side. ^[7] He is comfortable moving to the net off his powerful groundstrokes to finish points. Shelton has said "I love to get to net, be able to use some of my hand skills, athletic skills and going up to get the ball (to put away overheads) is one of my favorite things to do..." ^[7] He has said that the serve-and-volley is an important part of his game and an area he wants to further develop. ^[7] His tennis idol is Roger Federer. ^[43]

Performance timelines

Key

W

F

SF

QF

#R

RR

Q#

DNQ

A

NH

(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.

Singles

Current through the 2024 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships. ^[1]

Tournament	2021	2022	2023	2024	SR	W–L	Win %
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open	A	A	QF	3R	0 / 2	6–2	75%
French Open	A	A	1R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
Wimbledon	A	A	2R		0 / 1	1–1	50%
US Open	Q2	1R	SF		0 / 2	5–2	71%
Win–loss	0–0	0–1	10–4	2–1	0 / 6	12–6	67%
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Indian Wells Open	A	A	2R	4R	0 / 2	3–2	60%
Miami Open	A	A	2R	3R	0 / 2	1–2	33%
Monte-Carlo Masters	A	A	1R	A	0 / 1	0–1	0%
Madrid Open	A	A	2R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
Italian Open	A	A	2R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
Canadian Open	A	A	2R		0 / 1	1–1	50%
Cincinnati Open	A	3R	2R		0 / 2	3–2	60%
Shanghai Masters	NH		QF		0 / 1	3–1	75%
Paris Masters	A	A	1R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
Win–loss	0–0	2–1	6–9	3–2	0 / 12	11–12	48%
Career statistics
Tournaments	0	3	25	8	Career total: 36
Titles	0	0	1	1	Career total: 2
Finals	0	0	1	1	Career total: 2
Overall win–loss	0–0	3–3	26–24	15–7	2 / 36	44–34	56%
Year-end ranking	573	96	17

Doubles

Tournament	2022	2023	2024	SR	W–L	Win %
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open	A	A	1R	0 / 1	0–1	0%
French Open	A	2R		0 / 1	1–1	50%
Wimbledon	A	1R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
US Open	2R	1R		0 / 2	1–2	33%
Win–loss	1–1	1–3	0–1	0 / 5	2–5	29%
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Indian Wells Open	A	1R	1R	0 / 2	0–2	0%
Miami Open	A	QF	2R	0 / 2	3–2	60%
Monte-Carlo Masters	A	1R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
Madrid Open	A	1R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
Italian Open	A	2R		0 / 1	1–1	50%
Canadian Open	A	A		0 / 0	0–0	–
Cincinnati Open	A	QF		0 / 1	2–1	67%
Shanghai Masters	NH	1R		0 / 1	0–1	0%
Paris Masters	A	A		0 / 0	0–0	–
Win–loss	0–0	5–7	1–2	0 / 9	6–9	40%
Career statistics
Tournaments	1	16	4	Career total: 21
Titles	0	0	0	Career total: 0
Finals	0	1	0	Career total: 1
Overall win–loss	1–1	12–16	4–4	0 / 21	17–21	45%
Year-end ranking	287	95

ATP Tour career finals

Singles: 2 (2 titles)

Legend (singles) Grand Slam tournaments (0–0) ATP Finals (0–0) ATP Tour Masters 1000 (0–0) ATP Tour 500 Series (1–0) ATP Tour 250 Series (1–0)

Finals by surface Hard (1–0) Clay (1–0) Grass (0–0)

Finals by setting Outdoor (2–0) Indoor (0–0)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1–0	Oct 2023	Japan Open, Japan	500 Series	Hard	Aslan Karatsev	7–5, 6–1
Win	2–0	Apr 2024	U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships, United States	250 Series	Clay	Frances Tiafoe	7–5, 4–6, 6–3

Doubles: 1 (1 runner-up)

Legend (doubles) Grand Slam tournaments (0–0) ATP Finals (0–0) ATP Tour Masters 1000 (0–0) ATP Tour 500 Series (0–1) ATP Tour 250 Series (0–0)

Finals by surface Hard (0–1) Clay (0–0) Grass (0–0)

Finals by setting Outdoor (0–1) Indoor (0–0)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	0–1	Jul 2023	Washington Open, United States	500 Series	Hard	Mackenzie McDonald	Máximo González Andrés Molteni	7–6(7–4), 2–6, [6–10]

ATP Challenger and Futures/ITF World Tennis Tour finals

Singles: 7 (4–3)

Legend (singles) ATP Challenger Tour (3–3) Futures/ITF World Tennis Tour (1–0)

Finals by surface Hard (4–3) Clay (0–0) Grass (0–0) Carpet (0–0)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1–0	Jul 2021	M25 Champaign, USA	World Tennis Tour	Hard	Gijs Brouwer	7–6(7–4), 6–3
Loss	1–1	Jul 2022	Rome, USA	Challenger	Hard (i)	Wu Yibing	5–7, 3–6
Loss	1–2	Aug 2022	Chicago, USA	Challenger	Hard	Roman Safiullin	3–6, 6–4, 5–7
Loss	1–3	Oct 2022	Tiburon, USA	Challenger	Hard	Zachary Svajda	6–2, 2–6, 4–6
Win	2–3	Oct 2022	Charlottesville, USA	Challenger	Hard (i)	Christopher Eubanks	7–6(7–4), 7–5
Win	3–3	Nov 2022	Knoxville, USA	Challenger	Hard (i)	Christopher Eubanks	6–3, 1–6, 7–6(7–4)
Win	4–3	Nov 2022	Champaign, USA	Challenger	Hard (i)	Aleksandar Vukic	0–6, 6–3, 6–2

Doubles: 2 (1–1)

Legend (doubles) ATP Challenger Tour (0–0) Futures/ITF World Tennis Tour (1–1)

Finals by surface Hard (1–0) Clay (0–1) Grass (0–0) Carpet (0–0)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1–0	Jul 2021	M25 Champaign, USA	World Tennis Tour	Hard	Eliot Spizzirri	Chung Yun-seong Rio Noguchi	6–4, 6–0
Loss	1–1	Oct 2021	M15 Vero Beach, USA	World Tennis Tour	Clay	Liam Draxl	Johannes Ingildsen Duarte Vale	3–6, 4–6

National and international representation

Team competitions finals: 1 (1 title)

Finals by tournaments Davis Cup (0–0) United Cup (0–0) Laver Cup (1–0)

Finals by teams United States (0–0) World (1–0)

Result	Date	W–L	Tournament	Surface	Team	Partners	Opponent team	Opponent players	Score
Win	Sep 2023	1–0	Laver Cup, Vancouver, Canada	Hard (i)	Team World	Taylor Fritz Frances Tiafoe Tommy Paul Félix Auger-Aliassime Francisco Cerúndolo	Team Europe	Andrey Rublev Casper Ruud Hubert Hurkacz Alejandro Davidovich Fokina Arthur Fils Gaël Monfils	13–2

Wins over top 10 players

• Shelton has a 3–8 (27.3%) record against players who were, at the time the match was played, ranked in the top 10. ^[44]

Season	2022	2023	Total
Wins	1	2	3

#	Player	Rank	Event	Surface	Rd	Score	BSR
2022
1.	Casper Ruud	5	Cincinnati Open, United States	Hard	2R	6–3, 6–3	229
2023
2.	Frances Tiafoe	10	US Open, United States	Hard	QF	6–2, 3–6, 7–6(9–7), 6–2	47
3.	Jannik Sinner	4	Shanghai Masters, China	Hard	4R	2–6, 6–3, 7–6(7–5)	20

*As of October 10,2023 ^[update]

Notes

1. In ATP Tour and Grand Slam main draw matches, Summer Olympics, Davis Cup and Laver Cup

References

1. "Ben Shelton". ATP Tour . Retrieved August 15, 2022.
2. "Ben Shelton is poised to be the next big thing in American men's tennis". ESPN . August 23, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
3. "Find a Ranking or Player Record".
4. "Florida's Ben Shelton, Texas' Peyton Stearns win NCAA tennis singles titles". ESPN . May 28, 2022.
5. "Touted Ben Shelton Signs with Florida Men's Tennis". Florida Gators .
6. Clarey, Christopher (August 23, 2022). "An N.C.A.A. Champion Is Turning Pro. He Already Has a Big Win". The New York Times . Retrieved August 27, 2022.
7. "NCAA champion Ben Shelton could be the next big thing in American men's tennis". USA Today . Retrieved August 18, 2022.
8. "BEN SHELTON". Archived from the original on July 5, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
9. "Father's Day Commitment: Sons Choose To Play For Dad". Tennis Recruiting Network.
10. "Ben Shelton Turning Pro". Florida Gators. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
11. "Yibing Wu Wins Georgia's Rome Challenger". Tennis TourTalk. Archived from the original on August 17, 2022. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
12. "Brooksby Breezes Past Paire In Atlanta". ATP Tour .
13. "Atlanta Open: Isner books spot in quarter-finals". TennisMajors. July 29, 2022.
14. "NCAA Champ Shelton Earns Win In Masters 1000 Debut". ATP. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
15. "Ben Shelton keeps "moving in the right direction" by knocking out Casper Ruud in Cincinnati". Tennis.com . Retrieved August 14, 2022.
16. "Ben Shelton Turns Pro Ahead of US Open | ATP Tour | Tennis".
17. "NCAA champ turns pro, accepts US Open invite". August 23, 2022.
18. "Sudden Impact: Shelton Surging On Challenger Tour". ATP Tour. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
19. "Men's Singles Fastest Serve Speed Leaders". Archived from the original on September 16, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
20. "Title runs propel Caty McNally, Ben Shelton to new career-high rankings". Tennis.com.
21. "Ben Shelton Etches Name in ATP Challenger Tour History". Florida Gators. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
22. "Ranking Reaction: Casper Ruud finishes year at No. 3 following run to final of ATP Finals". Tennis.com.
23. Kemp, Emma (January 21, 2023). "Popyrin's muted Australian Open exit leaves rising star Shelton shining bright". The Guardian. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
24. "Ben Shelton's Dream Australian Open Debut Continues Into Fourth Round | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour.
25. "Ben Shelton Reaches The QFs At The Australian Open | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
26. "Tommy Paul Defeats Ben Shelton In All-American QF | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour.
27. "Ranking Reaction: Novak Djokovic returns to No. 1 after winning 10th Australian Open title".
28. "Showman Ben Shelton Finds His Biggest Stage Yet | ATP Tour | Tennis".
29. "Ben Shelton Cracks Top 20, Mover of Week | ATP Tour | Tennis".
30. "Ben Shelton Defeats Jannik Sinner in Shanghai | ATP Tour | Tennis".
31. "Ben Shelton Wins First ATP Tour Title in Tokyo | ATP Tour | Tennis".
32. "Ben Shelton wins first ATP title of career in Tokyo, will break into Top 15 on ATP rankings".
33. "First-Time Winner Spotlight: Ben Shelton | ATP Tour | Tennis".
34. "Can Ben Shelton Find a Way to Turin? Mover of Week | ATP Tour | Tennis".
35. "Shelton serves up a first in Houston". April 4, 2024.
36. https://twitter.com/TheTennisLetter/status/1777092038921781689
37. "Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe Play First ATP All African-American Final At A Place Arthur Ashe Was Not Welcomed". April 7, 2024.
38. "Shelton surges to Houston title, joins Roddick in history books". April 7, 2024.
39. "Shelton joins Connors, McEnroe as lefties to reach American No. 1". April 15, 2024.
40. "Brands Endorsed By American Tennis Star Ben Shelton". tennisfansite.com. August 5, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
41. "On Signs Iga Swiatek And Ben Shelton To Head-To-Toe Tennis Deal". Forbes.com. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
42. "Ben Shelton joins Rolex family ahead of 2024 Australian Open campaign".
43. "Ben Shelton | Bio | ATP Tour | Tennis".
44. "ATP Win/Loss record vs top 10".

External links

• Ben Shelton at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• Ben Shelton at the International Tennis Federation
• Florida Gators bio Archived July 5, 2022, at the Wayback Machine

Sporting positions
Preceded by Valentin Vacherot	SEC Tennis Player of the Year 2022	Succeeded by Johannus Monday