Ben Shelton has enjoyed a physically demanding week of dramatic tennis, but he won’t care. It has resulted in yet another final.
There, he will face fellow American Taylor Fritz, in what promises to be yet another war of attrition between two big-serving individuals.
It is a hard match to call, given both have been dragged into dogfights throughout the week that will have sapped their energy.
However, speaking on court about their upcoming clash, and Ben Shelton could only guarantee one thing about their match.
Ben Shelton reacts after reaching the final in Stuttgart
When first asked to sum up the match, the 23-year-old smiled as he stated: “No words. I hope you guys liked it!”
This naturally drew a big reaction from the Stuttgart crowd, who have supported Shelton well throughout this week.
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Asked to offer a word on the fans, again he laughed before admitting: “You know, it’s a short grass-court season, so I’m just trying to get as many hours as I can. [laughs] No, I think sometimes tennis doesn’t go to plan.
“Obviously, I lost the first set every single match I played. That can make things difficult, but there’s a lot of ways to win a match, and I’ve been choosing the most difficult route for the most part, but, you know, I think that my opponents have played great matches.
“Shout out to Jiri. I thought he played an outstanding match today, and I thought the level was really high.”
Then, discussing the showdown with Fritz, Shelton added: “Yeah, I’m very tired, but excited to be playing him in another final, second final playing against each other this year. Obviously, one of the top American guys that I’ve always looked up to. So anytime that we get to share the court, it’s a lot of fun.
“And I hope that you guys all come out and cheer as loud as you were today.”
Shelton was told one big change he should make to his game before Wimbledon by Coco Gauff’s former coach, but he seems to be enjoying early grass-court success without having to make such a bold alteration.
Ben Shelton’s head-to-head record against Taylor Fritz
Despite it feeling like both Shelton and Fritz have been ever-present on the ATP Tour for some time now, they have actually only played one another on three occasions.
Today’s final will mark the fourth, and offers the elder of the two an opportunity to level things at two wins apiece.
After all, whilst Fritz won their first-ever meeting in 2023, it has been Shelton who has enjoyed success since. He beat the 28-year-old in the semi-finals in Canada en route to the biggest title of his career thus far, and again earlier this year in the Dallas final.
| Year | Event | Round | Winner |
| 2026 | Stuttgart Open | Final | Tbc |
| 2026 | Dallas Open | Final | Ben Shelton |
| 2025 | Canadian Open | Semi-finals | Ben Shelton |
| 2023 | Indian Wells | Round of 64 | Taylor Fritz |
As the higher-ranked player as well, the signs do point to success for Shelton.
It will be interesting to see whether his gruelling week of tennis, which has involved nine sets, three comeback wins and five tiebreaks, will come back to haunt him.
