Canadian Open 2023: Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds, and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (1) Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton
Date: August 9, 2023
Tournament: Canadian Open 2023
Round: Second round (Round of 32)
Venue: Toronto, Canada.
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $6,600,000
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - Sportsnet, TVA Sports | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Sony Liv
Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton preview
Top seed Carlos Alcaraz will take on Ben Shelton in the second round of the 2023 Canadian Open on Wednesday.
Alcaraz was forced to skip the Australian Open at the start of the season due to an injury but has since dominated the tour. He won the Argentina Open upon his return and almost defended his Rio Open title as well, but he lost to Cameron Norrie in the final.
Alcaraz then claimed the title at Indian Wells, while his title defense in Miami concluded in the semifinals. He successfully defended his titles in Barcelona and Madrid after that. The Spaniard suffered a surprise exit from the third round of the Italian Open but made it to the semifinals of the French Open, where he lost to Novak Djokovic.
Alcaraz won his fifth title of the season at Queen's Club. He avenged his loss to Djokovic by defeating him in the final of Wimbledon to capture his second Major title. He then represented Spain in the Hopman Cup, and while he won both of his matches, it wasn't enough for them to get past the group stage.
Shelton was up against Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the first round here. The match started with three straight breaks of serve, with the Spaniard getting the upper hand to go 2-1 up. He then served for the set at 5-4, but the American broke back to level the score.
Shelton came out on top in the ensuing tie-break to clinch the opener. He struck first in the second set to go up a break and led 4-2, but Zapata Miralles fought back to level the score. The American then bagged the next couple of games to win the match 7-6 (1), 6-4.
Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton head-to-head
This will be the first meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton prediction
Shelton snapped his three-match losing streak by defeating Zapata Miraales in the previous round. He served quite well as he won 84% of first serve points, though his second serve was more vulnerable to attack. The American's ground game also worked smoothly as he struck 36 winners in contrast to 13 unforced errors.
Shelton will now go up against one of the best players on the tour this season. Alcaraz has lost just four times this year, while the American hasn't won consecutive matches since his quarterfinal finish at the Australian Open.
Alcaraz could be off to a slow start since it'll be his first match on hardcourts in a while. If Shelton is able to capitalize on that and put the World No. 1 under pressure, he could pull off an unexpected upset. But given how they've played so far, the newly crowned Wimbledon champion should be able to emerge victorious.
Pick: Carlos Alcaraz to win in straight sets.