Ben Shelton has arguably enjoyed one of the best years of his career, and yet it does feel like it’s finishing on a sour note.
After all, despite winning his maiden Masters 1000 title in Canada and thus marking himself as a contender to challenge at the US Open, a freak injury to his shoulder curtailed his progress.
He was forced to retire mid-match and miss the following month, only making his return to the tour in Shanghai.
Naturally, results have not returned easily, and the American has admitted he’s struggled to recapture that feeling he had before the final Grand Slam of the year.
Asked to rate his 2025 season, it felt like his actual figure was fair, but Ben Shelton’s subsequent analysis sadly focused on his tougher past few months.
Ben Shelton admits he hasn’t been happy with his performances post-US Open
Asked by the press after his loss to Felix Auger-Aliassime about his campaign thus far, he began by stating: “Yeah, I guess if I rated it 1 to 10, maybe an 8 out of 10, 7 or 8. I made huge improvements and strides from the year before.”
However, he then admitted that he’s not been happy with how his season has tailed off, with his two losses at the ATP Finals so far likely adding to this negativity.
Auger-Aliassime did admit he found something weird about his match with Shelton, speaking on-court immediately after.
Meanwhile, Shelton continued: “What I’ve done kind of post-US Open, I haven’t been happy with. But the rhythm that I found in the first three-quarters of the year was really good.
“I’m a guy that I get into a really good rhythm when I’m playing a lot of matches. I had a lot of clarity this summer on how to play: shot tolerance, what shots to play at certain times. Had a lot of clarity on what my identity was on the court, how I was going to win, my winning formula. Still searching for that a little bit right now.
“These last four tournaments of the year – Shanghai, Basel, Paris, here – have been more difficult for me trying to find that ‘wow’ feeling that all the guys that I have played have been in form and playing great tennis, competing well. Just certain things that feel very off that at this point of the year it’s, like, can’t be happening.”
Fortunately, he seemed to know what had been letting him down, concluding: “For me this week, it’s been my forehand, which usually is a money shot for me, money-maker. First ball after the serve, things that have been a little off that make it disappointing.
“A lot of things to be happy about this season.”
Shelton will play his final round-robin match tomorrow against Jannik Sinner.
What is Ben Shelton’s head-to-head record vs Jannik Sinner?
Whilst Shelton can no longer qualify for the semi-finals of the ATP Finals, he can still finish his season on a high, with just one match of his tournament remaining.
However, it will be an almighty task for him to overcome the in-form Italian, especially given their recent form against one another.
Like most of the ATP Tour, Shelton has a one-sided losing record against Sinner.
In fact, he has actually lost his last seven matches against him, with his last and only win of his career coming in 2023.
If he is to kick on in 2026 and become a genuine contender for Grand Slam titles, he will have to figure out a way to truly compete with players of this ilk. Perhaps tomorrow could be the start, just as his season comes to a close.
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