Ben Shelton jumps back to World No. 14 after loud Australian Open
Former Florida tennis star Ben Shelton is one of the young American stars in the sport, and he's back up to No. 14 in the ATP rankings following a semi-final loss to top-ranked Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open on Saturday.
It's not quite a career-high mark after spending two weeks at No. 13 last year, but Shelton hasn't been ranked inside the top 15 since a disappointing finish at the US Open in September.
In fact, it's Shelton's best Grand Slam finish since a semi-final appearance at the 2023 US Open. Although he failed to advance beyond the fourth round at all four majors last season, he still had a consistent and healthy year inside the top 25, including 12 weeks at No. 14 overall.
Ben Shelton at the 2025 Australian Open
Shelton cruised to the round of 16, dropping just two sets across three wins. He beat No. 15 Lorenzo Musetti in four sets to advance past the round of 32 and qualified for the quarter-finals after No. 41 Gael Monfils retired in the fourth set of a battle.
Monfils and Shelton went to a tiebreak in each of the first three sets, but a bad back forced the Frenchman to call the match after nearly three hours of play.
Shelton defeated Lorenzo Sonego in four sets to return to the semi-finals. He pushed Sinner to a tiebreak in the first round of the matchup but lost the next two sets 6-2. Sinner ultimately won the tournament, defeating Alexander Zverev in straight sets. Novak Djokovic retired in the other semi-final to set up the trophy game.
What's next for Ben Shelton?
There are no 1,000-level events in February, but Shelton usually plays a few tournaments back in the Americas to keep fresh for Indian Wells and Miami in March.
The Dallas 250 is next week, and Shelton finished in the semi-finals there last year, so look for him to make a run. The Acapulco 500 is another option at the end of the month. He made the quarter-finals there last year.
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