With Federer in the stands, Shelton survives Shapovalov at Wimbledon

  • Posted: Jul 06, 2024

Ben Shelton survived his third five-setter of the fortnight Saturday to reach the fourth round at The Championships for the first time, setting a clash against top seed Jannik Sinner.

The 14th seed battled past 2021 Wimbledon semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov 6-7(4), 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 in three hours and four minutes to become the first left-handed American man to make the fourth round at SW19 since John McEnroe in 1992.

Shelton did it with a familiar face in the stands. Eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer was at No. 1 Court to check out the action with his parents and longtime agent Tony Godsick. Federer’s agency, TEAM8, manages Shelton.

The American rallied from two-sets-to-one down in his first two matches against Mattia Bellucci and Lloyd Harris, respectively. On Saturday, he led by two sets to one and ultimately completed his victory by surging through his 15th set of the tournament.

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Shelton won the match by dominating the short points, winning the rallies of zero to four shots by a 131-107 margin. He won 81 per cent of his first-serve points and struck 38 winners to make the fourth round at a third major, having already accomplished the feat at the Australian Open (QF) and the US Open (SF).

Sinner advanced to the fourth round on Friday, while Shelton and Shapovalov were unable to complete a set before rain suspended play for the evening. The Italian leads the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series 2-1. All three of their clashes have come within the past 10 months.

Shelton is now 6-2 in five-setters after clawing post Shapovalov. The Canadian, No. 136 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, showed he is on his way back to the form that helped him crack the world’s Top 10.

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