Ben Shelton: Football and basketball and baseball were the cooler sports to play in America. But here we are
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The Florida native |A|
tapped as Americas next |B|
great tennis star opens |C|
up about his meteoric |D|
ascent, sitting out the |E|
Olympics and where he |F|
plans on going from |G|
here Mon 26 Aug |H|
2024 09.00 BST Share |J|
|Y| dir="ltr">Shelton is fresh off |Z| of Wimbledon when he |A| tells me this. The |B| same grand slam where, |C| in a span of |D| a week, he played |E| three grueling five-setters and |F| two doubles matches before |G| falling to world No |H| 1 Jannik Sinner in |J| the round of 16. |K| He also began the |L| tournament with a bone |M| bruise on his knee |O| from a bad fall |P| at a practice. “I |Q| actually wasnt sure if |R| I was going to |S| play,” he says.
Last |U| year, he lost in |V| the second round, and |Y| two years ago, he |Z| stepped on grass for |A| the first time. Still, |B| Shelton is unsatisfied. “Im |C| fortunate for what Ive |D| been able to do |E| in my career so |F| far, but obviously not |G| happy with where Im |H| at,” he says.
This |J| is Sheltons second full |K| year on tour. The |L| 6ft 4in American was |M| about to enter his |O| junior year playing tennis |P| at the University of |Q| Florida where his father |R| coached when he decided |S| to turn pro. His |U| serve – lefty and |V| clocking at speeds as |Y| high as 150mph – |Z| has spectators sitting on |A| the baseline on high |B| alert, afraid theyll catch |C| a stray. With a |D| rocket for a serve, |E| a massive forehand and come-ons! tailor-made |F| for rowdy tennis stadiums, |G| he made a surprise |H| run to the quarter-finals |J| of last years Australian |K| Open. Then, the semis |L| of last years US |M| Open.
This year, he |O| briefly became the No |P| 1 American man on |Q| tour. Going into the |R| US Open, which starts |S| on Monday in Flushing |U| Meadows, hes ranked 13th |V| in the world. With |Y| a long grand slam |Z| drought in American mens |A| tennis, some commentators have |B| eyed Bens game and |C| wondered: is he the |D| next great hope for |E| US men?
Certainly, the |F| competitor in him is |G| suited to be the |H| next great thing – |J| and the assuredness that |K| hes nowhere near his |L| peak. “The mental side, |M| the competitive side is |O| whats got me so |P| far this year, even |Q| though I havent felt |R| perfect out there on |S| the court,” he says. |U| “How much Im willing |V| to stay out there |Y| and fight has kind |Z| of been the deciding |A| factor thats helped me |B| in a lot of |C| my matches at Wimbledon, |D| even though I wouldnt |E| play my best.”
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|F| dir="ltr">he severe assessment of |G| his game is at |H| odds with the 21-year-old |J| I speak with a |K| week later at the |L| Mubadala Citi DC Open |M| in Washington DC. Shelton |O| is laughing with his |P| team when he comes |Q| off the doubles court |R| to fulfill his media |S| obligations. Its been a |U| long day: two rain |V| delays pushed his match |Y| into the evening before |Z| it ended in a |A| loss. We sit catty |B| corner on couches in |C| the players area, and |D| he takes a minute |E| to bring me in |F| on the joke that |G| had them in fits. |H| Its off-color, but hes |J| doubling over in laughter |K| again, and I cant |L| help but laugh along |M| with him.
“Sorry, were |O| children,” he says, throwing |P| his friend under the |Q| bus with him. “I |R| apologize,” he says, cracking |S| a dimpled smile. He |U| drapes a towel over |V| his broad shoulders, takes |Y| his second post-match protein |Z| shake from his trainer, |A| and readies himself to |B| talk tennis.
Shelton started |C| caring about tennis late |D| in a sport where |E| most kids specialize young |F| – and all too |G| often burn out. Early |H| on, he bucked the |J| legacy of his father |K| Bryan Shelton, a former |L| professional, and his mother, |M| a highly ranked junior.
|O| dir="ltr">“I thought tennis was |P| a boring sport. Football |Q| and basketball and baseball |R| were the cooler sports |S| to play in America. |U| So those were the |V| ones that I was |Y| obsessed with when I |Z| was little. But here |A| we are,” he says |B| with a laugh.
When |C| he saw his sister |D| missing school to play |E| tournaments, his tune changed. |F| He was 13. But |G| rather than play the |H| junior grand slams, Shelton |J| stayed closer to home, |K| and when it came |L| to deciding on college, |M| he chose the University |O| of Florida in his |P| backyard and where his |Q| father was the coach.
|R| dir="ltr">“I was pretty underdeveloped |S| when I got to |U| college. I had a |V| lot of holes in |Y| my game,” he says. |Z| “I was a little |A| bit of a mental |B| case on the court, |C| I got angry pretty |D| easily. But you know, |E| when you dont do |F| the right things on |G| a college team, when |H| your dads the coach, |J| the punishment is a |K| lot harsher than other |L| guys on the team |M| would have. I learned |O| fairly quickly to straighten |P| things out and figure |Q| out how to be |R| a good teammate, fly |S| under the radar when |U| I needed to, and |V| have less of those |Y| outbursts or bad practices |Z| or missing a workout |A| because I was sleeping |B| in.”
What were those |C| punishments? “He would just |D| get on me and |E| scream at me more |F| than the other guys, |G| but I get it |H| because you cant show |J| favoritism. Or Id have |K| to run sprints in |L| front of everybody if |M| I showed up late, |O| but if someone else |P| showed up late and |Q| then I showed up |R| late, I was running |S| a lot more sprints |U| than they were.”
But |V| he credits the team |Y| for keeping him in |Z| check. “I think tennis |A| can be a selfish |B| sport, and a lot |C| of people think the |D| world revolves around them |E| being a professional tennis |F| player, because your team |G| caters to you, and |H| the tournament caters to |J| you and everything.”
“But |K| I had the opportunity |L| of playing on a |M| team and supporting my |O| teammates, even being on |P| the bench sometimes and |Q| letting other guys get |R| the credit. I think |S| its something thats helped |U| me as a person |V| a lot, and it |Y| makes things tough sometimes |Z| out on the tennis |A| tour, because you are |B| out here by yourself |C| and competing by yourself, |D| and I do really |E| miss the team aspect |F| that I had in |G| college and then other |H| team sports.”
Shelton spent |J| a year on tour |K| before his dad joined |L| him. Shelton says his |M| dad has chilled out, |O| and in matches, the |P| elder Shelton is the |Q| picture of serenity in |R| contrast to the youngers |S| boisterous post-point celebration. But |U| its clear they speak |V| the same language: Bryan |Y| offers a word or |Z| two of advice and |A| Ben is already nodding, |B| ready to play the |C| next point.
“His ability |D| to adapt is what |E| makes him a great |F| coach,” Shelton says. “He |G| doesnt have to just |H| be talking in my |J| ear all the time |K| or just sitting back |L| and watching. He kind |M| of does both. He |O| reads me and understands |P| what I need in |Q| the moment, he gives |R| me the information when |S| he thinks Ill use |U| it. Hell pull back |V| some when he thinks |Y| that I got it |Z| myself.”
There was an |A| advantage to starting late, |B| too, even to the |C| holes in the game: |D| Shelton was always chasing |E| after better players.
“It |F| gave me a chasers |G| or hunters mentality,” he |H| says. “I was never |J| the best in my |K| age group. There were |L| always guys to chase |M| after, and I always |O| had room for improvement, |P| and there was always |Q| people doing things better |R| than I was doing. |S| So I dont feel |U| like I ever got |V| complacent or thought I |Y| was too good to |Z| continue working hard.”
Today, |A| Shelton is still chasing |B| better competitors, but hes |C| trusting the process. “Im |D| not the complete player |E| that I want to |F| be yet, and so |G| Im OK with taking |H| what some would call |J| a step backwards to |K| continue to improve,” he |L| says.
He ticks off |M| the parts of the |O| game hes currently working |P| on: movement, return of |Q| serve, serve and overall |R| shot tolerance. “When Im |S| moving really well, I |U| usually play really well, |V| and thats something thats |Y| not there 100% of |Z| the time for me |A| yet,” he says. The |B| return of serve has |C| been “in the past, |D| a liability,” he acknowledges. |E| And his game wouldnt |F| be what it is |G| without the serve – |H| “a weapon that needs |J| to continue to improve”.
|K| dir="ltr">Already, his points are |L| longer, and hes winning |M| more of them. Hes |O| worked on coming into |P| net more, capitalizing on |Q| his weapons, and hes |R| playing doubles to get |S| reps.
He credits the |U| mental side for how |V| deep hes been able |Y| to get into tournaments |Z| this year. “Once the |A| physical side, the actual |B| tennis starts coming along |C| with it, I think |D| Ill be in a |E| really good place.”
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|F| dir="ltr">helton remained in the |G| US during the Olympics, |H| starting the hard-court season |J| while others headed to |K| Paris to play on |L| clay. Its a choice |M| some players make for money |O| or for points: With |P| many of the best |Q| players at the Olympics |R| representing their countries, those |S| who play on the |U| circuit have better odds |V| to make it further |Y| in tournaments. I press |Z| him on why stayed.
|A| dir="ltr">“Im not really motivated |B| to play tennis because |C| of the points or |D| the prize money. I |E| love playing in front |F| of big crowds. I |G| love playing against the |H| biggest or in the |J| biggest events, against the |K| best players. The Olympics |L| is definitely an attractive |M| event, something that I |O| would really want to |P| play. But for me, |Q| it was purely – |R| I didnt want to |S| go back to Europe |U| again. Id had enough |V| at this point,” he |Y| said, laughing. “The season |Z| is long as it |A| is.”
Its hard to |B| remember that the competitor |C| is still new to |D| the tour. “I never |E| left the country until |F| last year,” he says.
|G| dir="ltr">Instead, Shelton stayed in |H| the US ahead of |J| the US Open, trying |K| to find his A |L| game. He acknowledges hes |M| the type of guy |O| that takes a few |P| weeks to find his |Q| groove on a new |R| surface. “I didnt win |S| hardly any matches in |U| the four tournaments leading |V| up to the Open |Y| last year,” he said. |Z| “Everyone was talking about |A| me not winning two |B| consecutive matches in a |C| row for the middle |D| part of the year.”
|E| dir="ltr">This year, hes improved |F| his hard court record |G| in the lead up |H| to the US Open. |J| At the DC Open, |K| he made it to |L| the semis. At the |M| Cincinnati Open, he made |O| it to the quarter-finals. |P| But the first match |Q| of this hard-court swing |R| got off to a |S| rough start. Shelton fell |U| in his first match |V| of the Atlanta Open |Y| to a player ranked |Z| 89th in the world. |A| It was a disappointment; |B| the ground was set |C| for him to do |D| well as the top |E| seed. But Shelton is |F| unperturbed.
“It takes a |G| lot for me to |H| hit the panic button, |J| and Im 21 years |K| old. I dont have |L| too much that Im |M| worried about.” Tennis, he |O| says, is about 52 |P| weeks – not one |Q| match.
“I want the |R| consistency in my effort, |S| my competitiveness. I want |U| my game to continually |V| improve. But that doesnt |Y| mean that the results |Z| will come every single |A| week,” he said. “The |B| greats learn how to |C| get it done week |D| in, week out, no |E| matter how theyre feeling, |F| and thats something that |G| Im working towards, but |H| I think takes a |J| lot of experience.”
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