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Australian tennis great Wally Masur is tipping young American Ben Shelton as a future star of the game after watching him go through to his first grand slam quarter-final in Melbourne.
The 20-year-old had never left the United States before the Australian Open and was ranked outside the world’s top 500 in June last year.
But Shelton will rocket up to No.43 at worst following his breakout run Down Under.
“He’s certainly got the looks, he’s got charisma and a serve to envy – he’s a serious athlete,” Masur said on Stan Sport’s Grand Slam Daily.
“First time out of the country, he’s played all his tennis in the States and his dad (Bryan) kept him on a bit of a slow burn throughout the course of his junior career.
“It’s proved to be pretty effective. His dad, of course, was a pro tennis player so he fully understands the journey.
“Ben Shelton has a massive service… but it just shows you must have a bit of character to absorb that sort of disappointment (in fighting back from two sets to one down in his fourth round match).
“I actually just walked past him in the corridor there at RLA… I think he’s just loving every moment of this.”
Shelton is one of three American men to make the Australian Open quarter-finals – the most for the country since 2000.
The others are 35th-ranked Tommy Paul, who will now play Shelton, and Sebastian Korda, who plays a quarter-final today against No.18 Karen Khachanov of Russia.
