Ten months after playing in his first-ever international tennis tournament, Ben Shelton has claimed his maiden ATP trophy with a straight sets triumph over Aslan Karatsev at the Japan Open.
Shelton, who was playing in a Tour-level final for the first time, rallied to a 7-5, 6-1, win over the former Australian Open semi-finalist. The 20-year-old blasted 18 winners past Karatsev to become the youngest player to win the tournament since Lleyton Hewitt in 2001. He is also the sixth first-time champion on the Tour this season.
“This means a lot to me and my team,” Shelton said during his on-court interview. “We have been working really hard since the beginning to build my game into something that could hopefully win titles on the ATP tour. This is something that I have been pushing for. I made some deep runs lately.”
Taking to the court, there was little to distinguish between both players throughout the early stages of the final with 10 games going by without there being a break before Shelton finally cracked Karatsev’s serve to nudge ahead 6-5. Tasked with serving out the opening set, he was able to do so with a serve-and-volley tactic that prompted an unforced error from across the court.
Despite his inexperience in the sport, Shelton never appeared to be overwhelmed by the occasion. Three games into the second set, he inflicted another blow on his rival by firing a blistering forehand winner to break for 2-1. The onslaught frustrated Karasev who received a code violation later in the second set for smashing his racket on the ground after losing a 40-15 advantage. Meanwhile, Shelton cruised to victory by winning the last five games played and converted his second match point after a Karatsev forehand landed out.
“You see the great champions, they finish weeks off. They don’t just get to the semifinals or the finals, they are also able to maintain their level throughout the week,” the rising star commented.
“I am not saying that I am anyway near there yet but to be able to do it in one week. Being consistent for five matches in a row, winning a title, and doing it here in Tokyo is really special.”
Shelton has now won 14 out of his last 16 matches played on the Tour. Following his Tokyo triumph, he will rise to a ranking high of No.15 on Monday. A increase of more than 80 places compared to the start of this year when he was ranked 96th in the world. This season, the youngster has also reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open and then the semi-finals of the US Open.
There have also been disappointments for Shelton who didn’t win back-to-back matches at 18 consecutive ATP Tour tournaments played earlier this year. His goal is to use his recent surge in momentum to end this season on a high.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for me,” he said. “Earlier in the season I was losing early (in tournaments) in a lot of weeks so my match count isn’t too high. I feel fairly fresh going into this last home stretch. I’m looking forward to going back to Europe and finishing this season strong.”
Shelton’s success follows in the footsteps of his father Bryan who won the Newport title twice during the early 1990s. It is only the fourth time in the Open era that a father-son duo has won ATP titles. The others to do so are Phil and Taylor Dent, Ramanathan and Ramesh Krishnan and Petr and Sebastian Korda.
