Ben Shelton will have his sights set on a big 2026 season, having shown glimpses of his potential in 2025.
Shelton shone brightest in Canada with his ATP Masters 1000 title, having also propelled himself to fifth in the world rankings.
He has since dropped to ninth, but enjoyed an impressive season with 40 wins and 24 defeats alongside his one title.
Shelton is confident of an American Grand Slam winner sooner rather than later, although European duo Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz once again stole the limelight in that regard this season.
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Andy Roddick went through Ben Shelton’s game with Bryan Shelton
The American did, however, enjoy a semifinal run at the Australian Open, and could have experienced similar US Open success if not for an early retirement due to injury.
The third round exit in New York has now been referenced by Andy Roddick in his analysis of Shelton, saying on his Served podcast: “I talked to Bryan Shelton, Ben’s Dad a couple of weeks ago, just going through… I don’t know if my opinions are right or wrong but just going through his game.
“I told him that I was heartbroken for Ben at the US Open because the thing that you want as a pro tennis player is to get to the point where you build and build and build and then you are pretty close to positive about what your output is going to be on a given day.
“Ben had gotten to that point by winning in Canada. Every time he stepped on the court, you knew it was going to be a pretty good product.
“There wasn’t the peaks and valleys, the consistency was there, learning how to manage the game and all that stuff. And then it kind of was injury in that third round at the US Open [which stopped him].
“I was just heartbroken because it takes months and months and years and years to get to the point where that output is predictable and you look like a top-five guy.
“Ben had that, he had gotten to that point, and then injury interrupted it. I was really excited about his prospects at the US Open before that injury.”
Can Ben Shelton challenge Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz?
Not many people know Ben better than Bryan, with the player’s father also acting as coach to the 23-year-old.
They have experienced great success in the former’s career so far, with three titles clinched, one in each of the last three seasons.
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He also reached the semifinals of the US Open in 2023, but perhaps going at least one step further may be the goal for 2026.
That is, however, easier said than done, but Shelton does seemingly represent a credible threat to the dominance of the leading two players on the ATP Tour.
But even with the promise he has shown, he may fall short in that endeavour next season, with Alcaraz and Sinner simply levels above right now.
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