Ben Shelton Advances to US Open Quarterfinals After Defeating Denis Shapovalov
QUEENS, N.Y. — By the time Ben Shelton walked off Arthur Ashe Stadium at 2:08 a.m., the stands had thinned, the New York air had cooled, and another statement had been made.
The American is still swinging in week two of the US Open.
Shelton punched his ticket to the quarterfinals late Friday night, grinding past Denis Shapovalov 7-6(3), 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-4, a bruising, stop-start contest that never quite settled until Shelton ripped it from the Canadian’s grasp.
He is now one of four American men in the last eight, all chasing the same ghost: Andy Roddick’s 2003 title, the last time a home player lifted this trophy.
Rivalry tilted one way
The numbers were already against Shapovalov when they walked on court. Shelton came in 4-0 in their head-to-head, including a three-set win in Dallas earlier this year and a five-set epic at Wimbledon in the Round of 32.
This one followed a familiar script. Tight early. Nerve-ridden. Then Shelton’s serve and swagger took over.
The first set turned on a razor-thin tiebreak. Shelton played it like a man who’d seen this movie before, stepping into returns, dictating with his forehand, and racing through it 7-3.
Shapovalov refused to fold. He dragged the second set into another tiebreak and this time seized the big points, edging it 7-5. For a moment, the match teetered. Shelton had served for the set twice and watched it slip away.
“That second set was tough,” he said on court. “I was serving for the set twice and ended up losing the set when I felt like I was in control. I really had to reset and refocus. It was important for me to get the next two sets and not be out here in a five-set war. I am happy with the way I recovered.”
The reset came fast.
Serve takes over, Shapovalov dips
Once the third set began, Shelton tightened his patterns and turned up the heat on serve. The radar gun has been his friend all week, and it rescued him again. Shapovalov’s level dipped just enough; Shelton pounced.
He raced through the third set 6-2, using his first strike tennis to shorten points and sap the Canadian’s belief. Every loose service game from Shapovalov suddenly looked like a liability. Every Shelton hold felt inevitable.
An early break in the fourth gave the former Florida Gator the grip he wanted. From there, he never loosened it. He managed the scoreboard, managed the nerves, and managed the clock, closing the door at 6-4 and sending what remained of the Ashe crowd into the night with another American still alive.
A bruising road to the last eight
Shelton’s run hasn’t been soft.
He opened against Tallon Griekspoor under the lights on Monday and started flat, down 0-2 in games and watching the Dutchman steam through the first set 6-1 in just 28 minutes. Then the match flipped.
Shelton broke early in the second, surged to a 2-0 lead, and rode the crowd’s energy. Once he settled into his rhythm, Griekspoor struggled to match his pace and weight of shot, and Shelton rolled through the remaining sets to move on.
On Wednesday, he faced Hubert Hurkacz, one of the cleanest servers on tour. Shelton answered with a serving clinic of his own, taking the first set in just 32 minutes while landing 85% of his first serves. Hurkacz responded like a top player, breaking Shelton and stealing the second set 7-5.
The match tightened, but Shelton didn’t blink. Holding a 6-5 lead in the fourth, he stepped up on match point and converted, sealing his spot in the third round and keeping his US Open campaign on track.
Shapovalov was the next obstacle. He’s now another name on Shelton’s growing list.
Tsitsipas next — roles reversed
Now comes a different kind of test: Stefanos Tsitsipas, former world No. 3, a man who has seen just about everything at this level.
They’ve met once before, three years ago in Cincinnati. Back then, Tsitsipas was No. 4 in the world and very much the established star. Shelton, ranked No. 41 at the time, was the one trying to prove he belonged. The Greek won a hard-fought two-setter.
The landscape has shifted.
Shelton arrives in this quarterfinal as the world No. 9, the higher-ranked player, the one carrying home hopes and momentum. Tsitsipas, now outside the top 50, comes in as the hunter rather than the hunted.
Sunday’s clash will mark Shelton’s second Grand Slam quarterfinal of the year after his run at the Australian Open. The stage is familiar now. The expectations are higher.
The question is no longer whether he belongs in this company.
It’s how far he plans to go.
