Ben Shelton is through to his first Australian Open semi-final where he’ll face off against the world number one.
American tennis in 2025 is in as strong a place as it has been in some time, with several players competing at the top of the ATP Tour.
Taylor Fritz finished 2024 as world number four, having reached the final of the US Open and ATP Finals, before winning the United Cup with Team USA to kick off the new year.
His friend and rival Tommy Paul qualified for the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, where he lost out to Alexander Zverev in an enthralling encounter on Rod Laver Arena.
It’s Shelton who’s had the best tournament down under, however, reaching the semi-finals, taking down the likes of Lorenzo Musetti, Gael Monfils, and Lorenzo Sonego on his way to the last four.
Next up for the 22-year-old is world number one and defending champion Jannik Sinner, who dominated Alex de Minaur in his quarter-final match.
The American is a big underdog against Sinner, although one tennis legend has potentially spotted a route to victory for Shelton.
Andy Roddick says Ben Shelton should ‘irresponsibly’ hit ‘massive forehands’ against Jannik Sinner
Speaking on his Quick Served podcast, former world number one Andy Roddick revealed what he ‘hopes’ Shelton will do against Sinner.
“Second serve, I hope Ben [Shelton] runs around and hits massive forehands,” he said.
“I don’t care if it’s irresponsible and he misses four, I want him to do it at 30-30 again on [Jannik] Sinner’s serve, he has to take the racket out of his hand as much as possible, and he has that option.
“I’m not saying it’s going to work, execution is really hard, you’re going to get a couple of spots where you can make him uncomfortable, and you’re going to have to take them.”
Roddick went on to explain how a shot that worked so well for Shelton against Sonego may not have the same success against Sinner.
“He’s hitting that off forehand better, I just don’t know if he’s going to be able to get around, because [Jannik] Sinner’s weight of shot affects everything,” said Roddick.
“You’re seeing him [Shelton] against [Lorenzo] Sonego and he’s able to get around and hit that push forehand off to the forehand, because of the pace of shot I don’t think he’s going to be able to make that little circle to hit it inside out, is he going to have to hit that line?
“Where is he going to hit his backhand? Is he going to pound it in the middle of the court? Which he has rightfully done over the past six months.
“Sinner’s pretty good from the middle of the court, you have to take shots.”
Roddick did, however, recognize another weapon in Shelton’s game that could cause Sinner some real problems in the Australian Open semi-finals.
“Ben’s got 144 in his arm, and his serve bounces all over the place,” he said.
“He’s probably got more pitches in the arsenal than any player on tour.”
Has Ben Shelton ever beaten Jannik Sinner on the ATP Tour?
Sinner and Shelton have played one another five times on the ATP Tour, with the head-to-head unsurprisingly favoring the world number one.
However, in their first career meeting, at the 2023 Shanghai Masters, it was Shelton who came out on top, as he won in three sets to advance to the quarter-finals.
Then ranked number four in the world, Sinner was shocked by Shelton as the American secured the highest-ranked win of his young career.
Unfortunately for the 22-year-old, things haven’t gone quite to plan since, as a 1-0 head-to-head record was quickly turned on its head.
- 2023 Vienna (R32) – Jannik Sinner beats Ben Shelton, 7-6, 7-5
- 2024 Indian Wells (R16) – Jannik Sinner beats Ben Shelton, 7-6, 6-1
- 2024 Wimbledon (R16) – Jannik Sinner beats Ben Shelton, 6-2, 6-4, 7-6
- 2024 Shanghai (R16) – Jannik Sinner beats Ben Shelton, 6-4, 7-6
Only time will tell if Sinner can make it five in a row against Shelton, or if the world number 20 can pull off the upset and secure his place in a Major final for the first time.
Sinner will take on Shelton in the Australian Open semi-finals on Friday, January 24.
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