The story of the surprising Ben Shelton: the reasons for the undercover who 'sneaked' into the top eight of the Australian Open

Among the eight best players at the

 2023, one slipped through who, until five months ago, was a total unknown on the ATP circuit:

.

The 20-year-old American was the great revelation of the last stretch of last season -when he reached the third round of the Cincinnati Masters 1000, in just his second tournament at the highest level- and extended his great moment in Melbourne, where, in the early morning of Monday in Argentina, he beat his compatriot

6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), 7-6 (7-4) and 6-2 and got into the quarterfinals.

So far, a story that does not seem very different from those of so many players who manage to break into the tour.

However, the Atlanta-born began his career at a dizzying pace and with a particularity.

He took the first -and for many, the most difficult- big step, the jump to the top 100, without having played any tournament outside the

The tour that he is disputing in oceanic lands meant his first trip to compete outside his country.

At the end of May 2022, Shelton closed his second year as a student at the

winning the

singles title , the United States university league.

Until then, she had played just a handful of

(ex Futures) and

- all on North American soil - and was outside the top 500 in the ranking (she had added her first ATP point in June 2021).

So, she decided to take advantage of the summer vacation to gain pace by competing with the best.

And it didn't take long for her to start breaking down barriers.

In early July, he played his first Challenger final, in Rome, Georgia.

Weeks later, already ranked 281st, he entered the ATP 250 in Atlanta as a wild card, his absolute debut at that level, and reached the second round.

At the end of August, he received an invitation to

, in which he reached the round of 16 with a resounding 6-3, 6-3 victory against the Norwegian

, then number five in the world.

And although he later lost clearly to

, he said goodbye to him with an unprecedented mark: he was the first reigning NCAA champion to win a game in a Masters 1000, in the same season in which he won his crown. university.

Later, when he had already announced his decision to leave college tennis and start his professional stage, he played his first Grand Slam draw in New York, also thanks to a wild card, and fell in the first round.

And he closed out the season with three straight challenger titles, in

, Virginia,

, Tennessee, and

, Illinois.

That last consecration allowed him to get into the top 100 of the ranking for the first time: on November 21 he appeared in the 97th step.

Everything, without leaving the

territory and without ever having set foot on a field of brick dust or grass.

That achievement revealed the great difference between the path American players have to travel to reach the elite and the one faced, for example, by Argentines.

The number of tournaments of all categories that the United States hosts each season makes it possible for its tennis players to score points and achieve achievements, such as breaking into the top 100, that no light blue and white racket -or from other nations with less development of that sport - he could get by playing solo tournaments in his own country.

Shelton is playing his second Grand Slam, his first outside the United States.

Photo AP Photo/Ng Han Guan

Juan Manuel Cerúndolo

, one of the great talents of the new albiceleste generation, for example, already had stamps from Turkey, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Tunisia, Sweden, Hungary, Finland, Italy, the United States, Austria, France and several others in his passport. , in addition to several adventures in South America, when he first placed his name in the top 100, in October 2021, at the age of 19 and months after winning his first, and so far only, ATP in Córdoba. 

"I wasn't a great player growing up as a teenager. I was more focused on other sports. I didn't have the same level as other 13, 14, or 15-year-olds even later in juniors. My parents didn't want to spend money on me traveling abroad. of the country and will play other tournaments. I also didn't have much room to miss classes in my studies, the ITF calendar is quite similar to the ATP", Shelton explained a few days ago. 

Shelton's accelerated growth, however, is not only due to that "geographical ease" to compete.

The American is the owner of an innate talent, inherited from his father

, who came to occupy the 55th step of the ATP ranking, was a two-time champion in Newton and today is his coach.

Although in his time in Melbourne, Ben recognized that for a long time he did not think of making a career with the racket.

Shelton inherited his tennis talent from his father Bryan, former 55th in the world, who is now his coach.

Photo AP Photo/Ng Han Guan

"The first twelve or thirteen years of my life, I swore that I would never play tennis. That was my dad's thing. But I fell in love with the sport," he said with a big smile, who before hitting the yellow ball, tried the basketball and American football.

He is left-handed like Nadal, but he has Federer as a great idol.

He has an explosive serve, a forehand that hurts a lot from the baseline and a very good two-handed backhand.

But his best qualities are his maturity and his mentality to stay firm and focused in the most difficult situations and understand that, in his career, he must go step by step, two strengths in which he had a lot to do his father.

"He is teaching me that it is not a question of a quick transition to the circuit, but rather a long process. It is thinking in the long term, not in the immediate results," he once commented.

"He's been the biggest influence on my tennis. It's great to be able to learn from him and the life experiences he's had." 

Your first trip abroad

After closing 2022 on the rise -and on the 96th step of the ranking-, Shelton decided to pack his bags and go on tour, for the first time.

With his confidence high and motivated to continue growing, he landed in Oceania.

Shelton is left-handed and has a two-handed backhand.

Photo ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP

He kicked off his 2023 with an

ATP 250 qualifying loss to Australian

.

He then received an invitation to play

, where he defeated

(41st) in his debut and was fired in the second round against Frenchman

.

That performance allowed him to reach his best ranking, 89th place.

And in Melbourne, it became one of the big surprises of the first Grand Slam of the year.

In only the second appearance of her in the main draw of a "big one", she debuted with a victory in five sets, by 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 2-6 and 7-6 (10-4 ), before the Chinese

, 96th.

She dismissed the Chilean

in the second round , coming from the qualy, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-3) and 7-5.

He eliminated the local

, invited by the organization, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) and 6-4.

And then Wolf, to advance to the quarterfinals, where he will collide with another compatriot,

.

"I feel great. It's been a very special week for me. It's my first Slam outside the United States and I'm enjoying it a lot," he commented after his last victory in Melbourne, who started his distance classes this week. third year at the University.

"This is coming as quite a surprise to me. I got on the plane a couple of weeks ago with no expectations. I knew it was going to be hard to adjust to the schedule and jet lag. This is my first time leaving the United States and I knew I was leaving It's going to cost. Maybe not having expectations has made me play more freely. Every game I've played I've felt the same, a mixture of joy and relief. I have that feeling of ecstasy. To have done this four times in a row has been incredible," he added. . 

Will Shelton continue to advance on Australian cement?

Maybe.

But whatever happens in the next round, this Australian Open is already a success for him and he made it clear that, beyond the ease he had to start his career as an American, he is now ready to shine with his own light.

And on the courts anywhere in the world. 

look also

Auger-Aliassime, the latest victim of the "curse" of Netflix in an Australian Open that knocks down favorites