Ben Shelton is no ordinary tennis rookie.
Less than a year after turning pro, the 20-year old Florida native is up to No. 81 in the live men’s rankings and into the second round of the Australian Open after a thrilling triumph in a fifth-set tiebreak Tuesday.
Shelton bagged his first career major victory by turning away Zhang Zhizhen of China, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 2-6, 7-6 (10-4), in a first-round match that was delayed by rain and extreme heat in Melbourne.
The strapping 6-foot-4 lefty won the NCAA singles championship last May as a sophomore at the University of Florida playing for his father, Bryan, a former top-100 player who is now the Gators’ head coach, and turned pro weeks later (he’s continuing his work toward a business degree online). Shelton lost in the first round of the US Open last fall before reeling off an unprecedented three consecutive titles on the minor league ATP Challenger Tour to boost his ranking to where he qualified directly into the Australian Open draw. He said his passport didn’t have a single stamp on it until he headed Down Under.
“Maybe eight months ago I wouldn’t think I’d be in this position, but I’m lucky I have a good team around me helping me,” Shelton told The New York Times.
And a generation of young Americans – starting with top-10 fixture Taylor Fritz, US Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe and second-generation stud Sebastian Korda – setting the pace and renewing hope of the country’s first men’s singles major title since … repeat after me … Andy Roddick in 2003.
“It definitely gives us a lot of hope, a lot of encouragement. It’s cool to see those guys do amazing things. It’s something to look up to for me, for sure,” Shelton said, per the Associated Press. “American tennis is definitely on the way up.”
Next for Shelton is a not-so-daunting matchup with Chilean qualifier Nicolas Jarry. Then a potential third-round showdown with Fritz under the heading of: the increasingly bright future of American men’s tennis.