2026 has been a somewhat strange year so far for Ben Shelton on the ATP Tour.
The American has illustrated his talent since January by winning a trio of titles, staying in the top 10 with a peak of No. 5, and recording two wins over top-10 opposition, both against Taylor Fritz. However, he has failed to win back-to-back matches at his last two majors played and at four masters 1000 tournaments.
“It’s been a weird season for me this year,” atptour.com quoted Shelton as saying in Washington.
“A lot of highs, a lot of lows. I’ve won more titles than I’ve ever won in a year. Only halfway done with the year.
“At the same time, there are so many things that I’ve been frustrated about, disappointed with in my game. I think that there’s a lot of room for improvement in the second half of the year.”
Shelton is hoping to find consistency in his tennis at the Washington Open, where he is the second seed behind Alex de Minaur. He has won two of his six Tour-level titles in his home country. The first was in 2024 at the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships, and the other was this year in Dallas.
“I’m somebody who tries to be consistent, I try to be consistent with the way I train, the way I live, how I go about my day-to-day life.” He explains.
“I guess the inconsistency of my play is what I’ve been more frustrated about. One of my biggest goals on Tour is to get to the end of tournaments and finish off the week and win titles, which is a part that I didn’t have as much before, but I’m getting better and better at now.
“I think some of the frustration comes from those early-round exits that are kind of like the trap rounds for me. I think that being able to be more consistent week in and week out in those situations is important for me.”
Washington will be Shelton’s 15th tournament of the season. In his last 14, he has failed to win back-to-back matches at nine of them. His first round match will be against compatriot Ethan Quinn.
Shelton’s season so far
| Tournament | Surface | Round Reached | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASB Classic | Hard (Outdoor) | Quarter-finals | |
| Australian Open | Hard (Outdoor) | Quarter-finals | |
| Dallas Open | Hard (Indoor) | Champion | |
| Indian Wells Open | Hard (Outdoor) | Round of 32 | |
| Miami Open | Hard (Outdoor) | Round of 64 | |
| U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships | Clay (Outdoor) | Quarter-finals | |
| BMW Open | Clay (Outdoor) | Champion | |
| Madrid Open | Clay (Outdoor) | Round of 64 | |
| Italian Open | Clay (Outdoor) | Round of 64 | |
| Hamburg Open | Clay (Outdoor) | Round of 16 | |
| The French Open | Clay (Outdoor) | Second Round | |
| BOSS Open | Grass (Outdoor) | Champion | |
| Terra Wortmann Open | Grass (Outdoor) | Quarter-finals | |
| Wimbledon | Grass (Outdoor) | First Round |
