The secret is the smile.
Ben Shelton has electrified crowds around the world with his flamethrower of a serve, which he could zip like a dart or carve like a master smith with any spin he chooses. But when the American starts cracking his trademark smile, you know he is having fun and embracing the moment. That is the signal that Big-Match Ben is in full flight.
Many tennis players dream just to play in “big matches”. Shelton lives to compete in them. And Big-Match Ben has proven an ability to rise to the moment no matter the occasion. He will hope to do so again on Sunday in the fourth round of Wimbledon against Jannik Sinner.
“He’s one of the guys who has had the most success on tour so far this year as the World No. 1,” Shelton said. “I think it’s a great opportunity for me, a great challenge and test — the biggest challenge in tennis playing the top-ranked player in the world.”
Do not expect Shelton to shy away from the challenge of facing the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings. Ten months ago, they opened their Lexus ATP Head2Head series in Shanghai, where Shelton was trying to reach his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final.
Sinner, already on his unforgettable ascent to the top of the sport, cruised through the first set 6-2. There was a wide gap in level and big-match experience. But Shelton did not mind.
The 2022 NCAA Singles Champion rallied for a 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) victory against the Italian dynamo. During his on-court interview, Shelton provided valuable insight into his mentality.
“Maybe I am addicted to playing on the big stages,” Shelton said. “I definitely haven’t had a normal upbringing in the tennis world or first year on Tour. It’s kind of been a little backwards, figuring things out as I go.”
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The lefty competed in his first Grand Slam main draw at the 2022 US Open and has advanced to at least the fourth round at three of his eight majors. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal nor Roger Federer did that.
Like Shelton, Sinner and Andy Murray each accomplished the feat three times through eight Slams. Three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka did not make the Round of 16 until his 11th Grand Slam tournament.
Shelton is one of only seven American men to reach the fourth round or better in at least three majors before turning 22. Four of the other six — Jimmy Connors, Jim Courier, Andy Roddick and Pete Sampras — climbed to World No. 1.
A big reason Shelton has performed at his best at the Slams — winning 71 per cent of his matches at those events compared to 56 per cent at all tour-level events — is that he is never afraid of the big stage. According to Scott Perelman, who was the volunteer assistant coach at the University of Florida for 11 years and assistant coach for one more, watched Shelton grow up.
Ben played football as a kid and Perelman would watch him fearlessly compete against bigger and older opposition.
“You can tell he had no fear as a youngster. He’s playing against guys twice his size. This is another one of his gifts,” Perelman told ATPTour.com last year. “He embraces the moment of the challenge versus having any sort of hesitation or worry or concern about how big a stage it might be or how big a moment might be. He just certainly seems to enjoy himself in those biggest moments.”
Ahead of his clash against Sinner, Perelman expanded on those thoughts. The coach called Shelton “as good a competitor as you will ever meet”. It does not matter what the game is — Shelton wants to win.
“Benny is fearless under pressure,” Perelman said. “[He] has a large personality. He is the guy that comes into the room and lights it up. He is also the guy that loves to perform in front of large crowds. Benny also understands like the great ones do what it means to rise up in the biggest moments… Pretty good combination.”
It is safe to say that runs in the family. Thirty years ago, Ben’s father and coach, Bryan Shelton, stunned World No. 2 Michael Stich at Wimbledon en route to the fourth round. On Saturday, Bryan sat in Ben’s box watching his son match his SW19 mark.
“I think it’s really cool for us to be able to share this moment together,” Shelton said. “It’s something that I don’t know if we thought that we would be in this position at this point in our lives, but really just grateful for everything that’s happened so far.”
When Ben was young, professional tennis was far from his mind. He was constantly around the college teams his father coached and eventually began taking morning lessons from Bryan alongside his sister Emma.
Bryan did not often regale his son with stories of his “glory days” on the ATP Tour, where he climbed as high as No. 55 in the PIF ATP Rankings. The North Star was Bryan’s college team.
“That was kind of I guess how closed off my mind was on how far I could make it in the sport or what was possible,” Shelton said. “So after knowing those guys and growing up around them, being able to attend the University of Florida, that was it for me. That was my dream, what I wanted to do.”
It is impossible to know that based on how comfortable Shelton has proven himself to be at the world’s biggest tournaments. He has been more than a tennis player on the most famous courts in the world — last year’s Tokyo champion has been a conductor.
Shelton works the crowd into the match with timely shotmaking and is never afraid to encourage them to get pumped up. If he plays a great point, you will know it. He is not just a competitor, but a performer.
“When Benny is smiling and having fun he is at his best,” Perelman said.
Shelton will surely take it all in when he walks on No. 1 Court Sunday to face Sinner. The Italian leads their Lexus ATP Head2Head series 2-1 and Shelton has needed five sets in his first three matches at Wimbledon. But no matter the opponent or obstacle, the American lives for these moments.
“I’m never somebody to be scared going into a match or feel unprepared,” Shelton said. “I’m always confident in my abilities no matter who is on the other side of the net.
“I’m 100 per cent ready to go the distance. If it happens to go five sets again tomorrow, I’ll be ready to go the whole way.”
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