Welcome to the sport’s elite, Ben Shelton. (Photo via Robert Deutsch, USA Today)
Former Florida Gator tennis star Ben Shelton- the son of former coach and pro tennis player Bryan Shelton- has made the Gator Nation proud by placiing his name in a class of its own.
Moments after the clock struck midnight to usher in Wednesday morning on the east coast, Shelton defeated Frances Tiafoe, 6-2, 3-6, 7-6, 6-2 in the US Open quarterfinals. In doing so, Ben Shelton becomes the first Florida Gator tennis player- man or woman- to reach the semifinal of any of the four major Grand Slam tennis tournaments (US Open, Australian Open, Roland Garros/French, and Wimbledon).
Lisa Raymond, who played on the Florida Gators’ women’s team, reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in 2004 and Wimbledon in 2000. In reaching the Elite 8 of the Australian Open this past January, Shelton matched that feat, but no Gator had ever ventured to the Final Four of one of the sport’s four grand stages. That is, until now.
Shelton got off to a great start against Tiafoe in the best-of-five-sets match. He won the first set 6-2, and although Tiafoe replied by evening the match at one set apiece, Shelton appeared to be in great shape by breaking Tiafoe’s serve and taking a 3-1 lead in the pivotal third set. But Tiafoe broke Shelton back twice and pulled ahead 4-3. Shelton then found another break within him to even the set, and the two broke each other once more to force a tiebreaker.
Perhaps that tiebreaker was when the legend of the Florida Gator tennis alum began in earnest. Up 6-4 with two set points, Shelton lost his first match point, but got the ball back with a chance to serve it out. Instead, he double-faulted twice in a row, turning the ball- and control of the set- over to Tiafoe, who had a chance to serve it out himself. But Shelton saved that set point and won a second straight point on Tiafoe’s serve, finally serving it out at 8-7 to take a commanding two-sets-to-one lead.
From there, Shelton cruised to a 6-2 victory in the fourth and final set to wrap up the victory and claim his place in history.
In addition to making history on the Florida Gators’ behalf, Shelton also made some history on behalf of all American men. Not since 1992 has an American man aged 20 or younger reached the semifinals of the US Open, meaning Shelton becomes the first American man to accomplish that feat in over 30 years.
The win also nets Ben Shelton a hefty amount of money. Heading into the quarterfinals, he’d already racked up $455 in prize money for his efforts this week alone. As a result of winning, Shelton tacks on another $320K, which comfortably qualifies him as a millionaire in 2023 alone.
This past January, Shelton had already made history by becoming the first Florida Gator man to reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tennis tournament. But his run to the quarterfinals at the Australian Open (worth about $372K) was followed by some disappointment. A quick appearance at the French Open (worth about $70K with a first-round loss) and a first-round victory at Wimbledon (worth another $108K) saw the top 32 seeds he’d earned disappear, dropping him down to #47 in the world. The top 32 seeds in every major tennis tournament are protected, meaning they won’t have to face another top 32 player in either the Round of 128 or Round of 64.
For those not in the top 32, they’re at the mercy of the draw. Tennis doesn’t work bracketogically like most sports; 1 doesn’t play 128 and 2 doesn’t play 127 in the first round, nor are they paired with 64/65 or 65/58 in the second round. So the #33 player in a tournament could theoretically draw #32 or even #1 in the first round, which is why grabbing a top 32 seed is such a huge deal.
Ben Shelton won’t have to worry about that anymore. He’s quickly flying up the live rankings into the top 30- before his win over Tiafoe, he was #27- and continuing this meteoric rise means he’ll set up more and more favorable paths for himself moving forward.
As a true freshman at Florida, Shelton secured the Gators’ first ever national championship in men’s tennis with his deciding victory at fifth singles. A year later, though Florida was ousted in the Elite 8, Shelton continued his rise by claiming the NCAA individual singles national championship. In doing so, he became the second Gator in as many years to claim that title, following his teammate and Florida captain Sam Riffice, who’d won it in 2021.
