Congratulations, Ben.
In his first ATP Masters 1000 final, Ben Shelton demonstrated remarkable composure under pressure in Toronto. The 22-year-old maintained his focus to secure a hard-fought 6-7(5), 6-4, 7-6(3) victory over Karen Khachanov on Thursday evening, capturing the title at the National Bank Open and earning the most significant achievement of his career.
“It’s a surreal feeling,” said Shelton, who became the youngest American ATP Masters 1000 champion since Andy Roddick in 2004. “My best tennis came out when it mattered most. I was clutch, I persevered, I was resilient. All the qualities I like to see in myself.”
Carlos Alcaraz positioned at the mountain summit to commence the year
Consecutive victories over top-10 players Alex de Minaur and Taylor Fritz marked his path to success, elevating him to a career-high No. 6 ranking in the ATP rankings.
Shelton, with the goal of making his debut at the Nitto ATP Finals, has risen to fourth place in the PIF ATP Live Race to Turin. He will seek to improve his position this week at the Cincinnati Open, where top-ranked players Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz return to competition for the first time since Sinner defeated Alcaraz in their four-set final at Wimbledon last month.
Photo/NationalBankOpen
ATP contributed to this coverage
