Ben Shelton’s disappointing ATP Finals campaign came to an end as he was beaten by Jannik Sinner in Turin.
Shelton lost to Felix Auger-Aliassime, Sinner, and Alexander Zverev to end his maiden ATP Finals with three straight losses.
The American narrowly lost out to Sinner in two sets, with the Italian needing a tie-break to defeat Shelton in straight sets.
Shelton’s game plan against Sinner has been questioned by Tim Henman, who was watching from the Sky Sports commentary booth.
Tim Henman had one issue with Ben Shelton’s match with Jannik Sinner
Henman instantly saw a problem with Shelton’s game plan against Sinner as he was beaten by last year’s winner.
The American was not relying on his serve against the world number two, and Henman thought that was strange.
Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: “He’s got probably the fastest serve in the game right now, and he hits a first serve 162km/h in the middle of the box to start the rally and get into a baseline exchange with arguably the best baseliner in the sport.
“What is that about? And reflecting on the worst type of people to play against – it’s Opelka, it’s Isner, it’s Karlovic. For those that don’t remember, they’re 6″10 and the biggest servers in our sport. They’re a nightmare because they serve aces and take the racquet out of your hand.
Henman believes that Shelton would have had a much better chance of beating the Italian if he put more emphasis on his serve.
“Shelton’s serve is not quite in that upper echelon of serves, but it is an absolutely huge weapon, and I see him play rallies like this, and he’s trying to prove he’s a ‘good tennis’ player. That’s not going to get it done against Sinner.”
Shelton has now lost his last eight matches against Sinner, with the American unable to win a single set.
Brad Gilbert shares what Ben Shelton should have done against Jannik Sinner
Andy Murray’s former coach Brad Gilbert shared a similar view to Henman while watching Shelton vs Sinner.
Taking to social media during the match, the legendary tennis coach said: “Tough matchup for Shelton vs Sinner.
“That’s 18 sets on the trot he’s lost in this matchup, [I would] like to see him bring the gas all the time on serve one and two. Once the rally gets neutral [Shelton has] big problems.”
Sinner is absolutely at the top of his game right now, but you can’t help but feel that Shelton is playing into his hands.
Whether it’s down to the American becoming overawed by the occasion and his opponent, he desperately needs to work out how to play Sinner if he wants to win a Grand Slam.
