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USA Today
5 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Ben Shelton defeats Diallo at Washington 500, sets up match with Tiafoe
Ben Shelton defeated Gabriel Diallo in the third round of play (Round of 16) at the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C., 6-3, 6-2. Shelton outmatched Diallo with his serve, tallying 16 aces on a day when he had 46 total serve opportunities (first or second). He reached 146 mph while averaging 133 mph on his first serve. Shelton also made the most of the opportunities he was given, converting three of four break points. At the same time, Shelton prevented Diallo from ever reaching a break point. Total dominance. In the quarter-final on Friday, Shelton will face off with one of the players he knows best on the ATP Tour, fellow American Francis Tiafoe. Big Foe and Shelton have a friendly rivalry going, and their styles always make for an entertaining clash for the fans. Both have large personalities, and the momentum should swing back and forth all night. "I'm excited," Tiafoe said after his recent win. "We're great friends. We played an incredible match at the Open last year, I think that's the best we actually both played. He got me the first couple of times. He's a great player, a great friend of mine. Laver Cups, Davis Cups. We talk to each other outside of the game, we hang out outside of the game. I love that dude, but tomorrow obviously there's no friends. We're going to try to cut each other's heads off, and the crowd's going to love it. I'm going to love the competition, and I hope to get over the line." Tiafoe came out on top in their last meeting, a Round of 32 match at the US Open that lasted five sets. Shelton got the better of Tiafoe the first two times they met on the tour, though, taking a US Open quarter-final and Houston 500 final. The match is scheduled to begin not before 7 p.m. ET, although a later start wouldn't be out of the ordinary. Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
New York Post
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Post
ATP Washington picks: Ben Shelton vs. Gabriel Diallo odds, prediction
Gambling content 21+. The New York Post may receive an affiliate commission if you sign up through our links. Read our editorial standards for more information. Thursday's showdown between Ben Shelton and Gabriel Diallo at the ATP Washington Open may not break into the mainstream, but tennis fanatics and bettors will consider it a can't-miss tilt. Shelton and Diallo are two rising powers in the sport, and they both should be well-suited for the North American hard-court swing, which favors players who can overpower their opponents with their serve and groundstrokes. Shelton, the World No. 8, is a -200 favorite over Diallo on Thursday. ATP Washington: Shelton vs. Diallo odds, prediction Diallo defeated Shelton in their only professional meeting, but that came back in 2022 on the Challenger circuit, so there's nothing you can really learn from that result. Not only are the two big-serving stars much better players now, but they're also in terrific form. Shelton is just a couple of weeks removed from a trip to the Wimbledon quarterfinals, where he lost to Jannik Sinner. Shelton had dropped just one set prior to his loss to the eventual champion. Diallo was stopped in the second round of Wimbledon by No. 4 Taylor Fritz, but he took him to five sets, ending a terrific spell on the grass in 2025. The Montreal native won a title at the Libema Open as part of a 9-3 run on the lawn. This is the first tournament for each player since Wimbledon, but both Shelton and Diallo looked terrific in straight-set wins in the Round of 32. Ben Shelton in action at ATP Washington Open. Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Both of these players are unabashed about how they want matches to unfold. Shelton and Diallo boast two of the best serves on tour, and they'll want to win quick, cheap points when they're starting with the ball. Given the stylistic matchup, it's no surprise that the Over/Under is set at 24.5 games, with juice on the over. In all likelihood, this match will be decided by which player holds their nerve in tiebreaks, and that really narrows the margin for error for both players. In this kind of matchup, I'd lean towards the underdog, especially a punchy one like Diallo. The Play: Gabriel Diallo +160 (bet365) Why Trust New York Post Betting Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Ben Shelton cruises through opening round at Washington 500
Back on American soil following a quarter-final finish at Wimbledon, former Florida Gator and world No. 8 Ben Shelton cruised his opening match at the Mubadala Citi DC Open against fellow American Mackenzie McDonald (No. 95), 6-3, 6-4, on Tuesday night. It took just 1 hour and 15 minutes for Shelton to get the job done in the stadium, hitting 23 winners and nine aces. Shelton punished McDonald whenever the latter missed his first serve. Shelton won 17 of 24 second serve return points and won two of three critical break points. Shelton dominated the opening set. The two were about even whenever rallying, but Shelton's overpowering serve proved to be an early difference-maker. That's par for the course for Shelton, especially in these early rounds at 500-level events. He has only truly struggled against the world's No. 1 and No. 2 players this season in Grand Slam play, so these games are about fine-tuning his game and improving his weaknesses. He moved well on the hard court and played a strong return game. The second game was more of the same. McDonald spent most of Shelton's service points trying to figure out how to return a first serve coming in at 130 mph on average. Shelton's fastest of the day came in at 145 mph, and he only had to play a second serve twice. Shelton will face Gabriel Diallo in the Round of 16 on Thursday. While the two have never met at an ATP Tour event, Diallo got the best of Shelton, 5-7, 7-6(5), 6-3, at an October 2022 Challenger Tour event. Diallo reached the final in that tournament. Should Shelton advance, he'd have a chance to play doubles partner and fellow American Francis Tiafoe in the quarter-finals. Another option is Flavio Cobolli, which sets up a rematch of last year's semi-final at this event. Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Ben Shelton climbs to personal best No. 8 in ATP rankings ahead of Washington 500
Ben Shelton didn't even have to play last week, yet he's moving further up the ATP rankings, a personal best No. 8 in the world. Holger Rune's loss of points from a Hamburg Open quarter-final run in 2024 sent him down a spot. Both players are set to participate in the Mubadala Citi DC Open, along with a handful of other top-10 players. Shelton could move up to No. 7 next week if he goes deeper in the tournament than Lorenzo Musetti, Andrey Rublev and Rune. Shelton, the No. 4 seed in the Washington, D.C., 500-level event, faces wild card and world No. 95 Mackenzie McDonald in the Round of 32 on Wednesday with a start time to be determined. A win sets up a Round of 16 matchup with either the 15-seed, Gabriel Diallo, or Fabian Marozsan. Doubles with a friendly rival Shelton is also participating in doubles action alongside fellow American Francis Tiafoe. The two have trained together and battled fiercely on the court in recent years. As two of the country's young stars, there's a mutual respect between the two that should help them find chemistry. The duo lost their only game at the London Queen's Club 500-level tournament in June. Shelton is ranked 147th in doubles and has a 4-7 record with various partners. Focusing on singles is a priority for Shelton, but he likes to play as much tennis as possible in these non-Majors. Shelton and Tiafoe take on Matthew Ebden and John Peers in the opening round (of 16) on Monday in the final game of the night session in the stadium at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park. Other Gators participating in DC Open Shelton is the only Florida Gator in Washington this week. Sophomore Adhithya Ganesan and 2018-19 graduate Alfredo Perez are in the qualifying draw. Ganesan is a top-40-ranked college player by the ITA and is getting his first taste of ATP qualifying action after playing exclusively in ITF tournaments. He fell to No. 82 Rinky Hijikata, 6-3, 7-5. Perez held up with fellow alternate Andrea Vavassori in the first set, falling 7-5, but he retired after one game in the second set. Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Adam Levine Reveals How Blake Shelton Pranked Him When He Was First Dating Wife Behati Prinsloo
When Adam Levine first started dating his now-wife, model Behati Prinsloo, he wanted to woo her with a special present. So, he enlisted the help of his The Voice costar, Blake Shelton — rookie mistake. While serving as the guest on the Thursday (July 3) episode of Hot Ones, the Maroon 5 frontman revealed how the country star hilariously pranked him early on in his relationship with Prinsloo. 'My now-wife, then brand-new girlfriend, she said she really wanted a teacup pig,' Levine told host Sean Evans. More from Billboard Adam Levine Confirms New Maroon 5 Album, Single & Tour on 'Tonight Show': 'The Rumors Are Correct' Avril Lavigne and Simple Plan Cover Blink-182's 'All The Small Things' at Festival d'été de Québec Kesha Is Finally Free on First Independent Album 'Period': Stream It Now 'And I didn't know what that was, but of course, the first person I would ask …,' he continued, referencing Shelton's farming background. 'So, I asked Blake, I'm like, 'What's a teacup pig?' He's like, 'I'll get you a teacup pig. Yeah, give me five grand.'' Levine handed over the money, emphasizing to Shelton that he wanted a pig that would stay small and not grow to the size of a normal pig. Shelton returned with a piglet that the 'Moves Like Jagger' singer then gifted to Prinsloo, but the setup 'probably lasted like three weeks' before the couple got tired of the pig's incessant squeals and gifted it to a little girl. When that girl sent them photos of the pig six months later, revealing that it had grown to be 'like, 400 pounds,' Levine says he realized that Shelton had knowingly given him a standard pig — not a 'teacup' pig as he'd asked. 'I'm just like, 'Blake, bro, $5,000 for a pig that wasn't a micro pig?'' Levine recalled, laughing. 'And he's like, 'You're an idiot! There's no such thing as f–king teacup pigs you dumba–!'' Levine continued. 'So that was a pretty good prank that he played on me.' The 'God's Country' singer and Levine served as coaches together on The Voice for 16 seasons, starting when the show first debuted in 2011, and pranked each other often on the NBC competition. Luckily, Shelton's piggy prank didn't impact Levine's relationship; the Maroon 5 singer and Prinsloo would go on to tie the knot in 2014 and welcome three children together in the years after that. As his kids are growing up, Levine — who will drop new album Love Is Like with his Maroon 5 bandmates in August — is now having fun coaching their youth basketball team. 'My worst quality [as a coach] is I get hotheaded,' he told Evans. 'And these kids are children. They're eight years old. But when the refs are sleeping, man, I'm like, 'Come on!'' Speaking of being hotheaded, Levine definitely felt the heat on Hot Ones. He started by warning viewers that he gets 'really deep sweat' under his eyes — 'That's going to be really attractive to share with everybody,' he quipped — many bites of chicken after which he started perspiring profusely from his lower lids, dabbing at them furiously with his napkin. 'Here it comes,' he said, gesturing to his face shortly after trying a bit of the absurdly spicy Da' Bomb hot sauce. Watch Levine's full Hot Ones episode above. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart Solve the daily Crossword
