Ben Shelton has a number of close friends on the ATP Tour.
Shelton has a good relationship with many American players including Frances Tiafoe, Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul.
The 23-year-old is the current top-ranked American ATP player and has returned to competition in Munich, after Shelton skipped the Monte Carlo Masters.
This is where Shelton played his compatriot and world number 112, Emilio Nava, who he has called his best friend in tennis.
Ben Shelton calls Emilio Nava his ‘best friend’ on the ATP Tour
Shelton had struggled for form in recent weeks, but was able to return to winning ways after beating Nava 7-6(4), 3-6, 6-3.
In his on-court interview after the match, Shelton called Nava one of his best friends and was full of praise for the way his compatriot played.
“Yeah, it’s tough. Not just another American, but probably my best friend out on tour, one of a few,” said Shelton.
“His trajectory has been steep lately, so happy to see the way that he’s been climbing. I know he wasn’t feeling 100% today, so feel bad about that. You know, hope he gets back to 100% quickly, because he’s playing great on the clay.
“He’s got a massive serve, similar to my first round match last year, so it made things really, really difficult. He returned well down the stretch in the second set, broke me when it mattered and he was clutch.
“So to get through that, I’m really happy, you know starting my run here in Munich, it’s a special place for me and just excited to keep it going.”
Shelton played doubles with Nava at the Dallas Open in 2024, where they were able to reach the semifinals.
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Ben Shelton admits improvements he needs to make on his serve
While Shelton was able to beat Nava, he was not entirely happy with his performance and was critical of how he played in the second set.
The world number six has one of the best serves in men’s tennis right now, but Shelton highlighted the improvements he needs to make for his next match.
“A lot of improvements,” said Shelton. “The one thing that I can really pick on is the drop off in my serve in the second set. Hitting spots, miles per hour, first serves in, double faults all went against me and some of that had to do with the pressure he was putting on return, how well he was returning.
“So I think it’s important for me to iron those things out. It’s never easy to serve accurately and consistently when there’s a little bit of altitude, but when you do make it to your spot you certainly get rewarded.”
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Shelton reached the final of the BMW Open in Munich last year, where he lost to Alexander Zverev, and he has spoken about how the colder conditions impact the way he plays.
“I think it’s still live,” said Shelton when asked about the conditions. “I think I played a couple of matches in these type of conditions last year when I played Botic [Van de Zandschulp] and [Luciano] Darderi, it definitely wasn’t warm.
“Maybe a little bit colder this year, but like I said, with altitude the ball is still flying and you can still serve somebody all the way to the back fence and it makes great servers really difficult to play here, even if it isn’t hot.”
Shelton will now move on to the second round, where he will play young Belgian Alexander Blockx.
The 23-year-old is also playing doubles in Munich alongside his compatriot Ryan Seggerman.
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