"Me & my dad have this conversation a lot... I'm not where I want to be" - Ben Shelton opens up about his tennis journey
Ben Shelton has reflected on his meteoric rise in men's tennis in recent years. The 2023 US Open semifinalist has also admitted to having frequent conversations about it with his father and coach Bryan, who used to be a top-100 ATP tour player in both singles and doubles.
Shelton made his ATP tour debut in 2022, transitioning from college tennis. At that year's Cincinnati Open, the Florida native sent shockwaves around the tennis world when he comfortably dispatched the-then World No. 5, Casper Ruud, in the second round. Shelton hasn't looked back since. Right now, the 21-year-old is ranked World No. 14, and has established himself as one of the most powerful servers on the ATP tour.
Currently participating at this year's edition of the Cincinnati Open, Shelton told Tennis Channel that he and Bryan tend to regularly talk about how rapidly he has developed. The youngster's admission came after his 7-6(3), 7-6(3), first-round win over compatriot Reilly Opelka in the first round.
"Me and my dad have this conversation a lot. It's crazy to think about how far we've come and how much more room we have for growth. I'm not where I want to be, doing the things that I want to do yet, but I know I have room for improvement," Shelton said.
The World No. 14 went on to praise his team for aiding his growth and said that he has the "work ethic" needed to get even better.
"I have the work ethic to get better and I have a great team in place, so... I'm excited with what I've been able to accomplish, but I think that we have a lot more work to do, but I'm happy with the position that I'm in and the experiences that I've been able to have," Shelton added.
At Wimbledon 2024, Ben Shelton recalled being coached by father Bryan during his college tennis days
After his third-round win over Denis Shapovalov at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, Shelton revisited his college tennis days, during which he was a part of the Florida Gators team, with Bryan as its head coach. According to the young tennis ace, he had to work just as hard, if not harder than, his teammates, despite having his father as the coach.
"He (Bryan) was obviously my coach in college and that was tough because there are 11 other guys on the team. I’m the coach's son, so he has to show that there’s no favoritism, which I understand. But also I’m running more sprints than everyone else when I do something wrong or show up late. I’m getting chewed out for more. If I lose a match it’s a bigger deal than everyone else," Shelton said.
Shelton will face either Argentina's Tomas Martin Etcheverry or Italy's Matteo Arnaldi in the second round of the Cincinnati Open.