Ben Shelton has played Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner during his time on tour.
But the American number one didn’t name any of those Grand Slam winners as his favourite opponent.
Who will win the 2026 Italian Open?
A stacked field in Rome!
During a recent Q&A on his YouTube channel, Shelton named his favourite opponent on the ATP Tour.
Ben Shelton says Arthur Fils is his favourite opponent
“Arthur Fils,” he said.
“No doubt.”
Shelton, 23, and Fils, 21, have met three times on the ATP Tour.
Ben Shelton and Arthur Fils’ head-to-head record (2-1)
| Match | Winner | Loser | Score |
| 2024 Swiss Indoors – SF | Ben Shelton | Arthur Fils | 6-3, 7-6 |
| 2024 Japan Open – QF | Arthur Fils | Ben Shelton | 7-5, 6-7, 7-6 |
| 2023 Laver Cup – RR | Ben Shelton | Arthur Fils | 7-6, 6-1 |
Shelton leads their head-to-head 2-1, having beaten Fils at the 2024 Swiss Indoors and the Laver Cup a year earlier.
With Fils missing six months of action due to injury, we have been deprived of a fourth instalment of their rivalry.
Now fully fit and in great form, perhaps Fils will have a chance to level their head-to-head at 2-2 sometime later this year.
Shelton was also asked to select the best matches he has ever played.
“US Open last year against [Pablo] Carreno Busta,” he said.
“Last year against [Taylor] Fritz in Toronto.
“And then 2022, [Casper] Ruud in Cincinnati.
“Also, 2023 Shanghai against [Jannik] Sinner.”
Ben Shelton’s best matches
- 2025 US Open 2R [WIN] vs Pablo Carreno Busta, 6-4, 6-2, 6-4
- 2025 Canadian Open SF [WIN] vs Taylor Fritz, 6-4, 6-3
- 2022 Cincinnati Open 2R [WIN] vs Casper Ruud, 6-3, 6-3
- 2023 Shanghai Masters 4R [WIN] vs Jannik Sinner, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6
Shelton beat Jannik Sinner at the 2023 Shanghai Masters, but lost their next nine matches.
He’ll be hoping for a shot at revenge in the future, perhaps on one of the biggest stages of them all…
Ben Shelton sets sights on 2028 Olympics in LA
Shelton is looking forward to representing Team USA at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
“Yes, it’s a big goal for me,” he said.
“I want to be there in 2028.
“I have a lot of tasks I have to accomplish if I want to cover over the next two years, so we will see.”
Shelton skipped the 2024 Olympics, instead focusing on preparing for the hard-court tournaments in North America.
Should he make his Olympic debut two years from now, he will have a chance to become just the second American man to win singles gold in the Open Era.
Olympic gold medallists (Open Era – Men’s singles)
- 1988 (Seoul, South Korea) – Miloslav Mecir (Czechoslovakia)
- 1992 (Barcelona, Spain) – Marc Rosset (Switzerland)
- 1996 (Atlanta, USA) – Andre Agassi (USA)
- 2000 (Sydney, Australia) – Yevgeny Kafelnikov (Russia)
- 2004 (Athens, Greece) – Nicolas Massu (Chile)
- 2008 (Beijing, China) – Rafael Nadal (Spain)
- 2012 (London, UK) – Andy Murray (Great Britain)
- 2016 (Rio, Brazil) – Andy Murray (Great Britain)
- 2020 (Tokyo, Japan) – Alexander Zverev (Germany)
- 2024 (Paris, France) – Novak Djokovic (Serbia)
American tennis legend Andre Agassi won Olympic gold 30 years ago, defeating Spain’s Sergi Bruguera in the final.
Interestingly enough, Agassi won his gold medal on home soil, something Shelton will be looking to emulate in 2028.
Shelton won’t want to worry about the Olympics just yet, though, as he now turns his attention to the Italian Open, in Rome.
Who will Ben Shelton play at the Italian Open?
Entering the competition as the fifth seed, Shelton has received a bye into the second round.
There, he will play either Daniel Merida or Nikoloz Basilashvili, two qualifiers.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Andrey Rublev, and Brandon Nakashima are the three other seeds in Shelton’s section of the draw.
With all due respect to Davidovich Fokina, Rublev, and Nakashima, Shelton will be confident of reaching the quarter-finals in Rome.
He could then play either Fils or Sinner in the quarter-finals.
Shelton has history with both players and will know a quarter-final win would make him one of the favourites to win the Italian Open.
Only time will tell if Shelton can emerge victorious in the Italian capital, but you certainly won’t want to miss any of the action.
