Former Florida tennis phenom Ben Shelton has scored another victory at the US Open Championships in New York. The world No. 13 player defeated Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut in straight sets 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 on Wednesday.
The match featured some of the toughest conditions Shelton and his opponent had encountered so far in the tournament.
Since the US Open is played in the middle of the day on the grandstand court, there is no way to find shade other than the individual players’ parasols.
Shelton picked up where he left off with his first-round win in Wednesday’s match.
During this straight-set victory, Shelton showed off his skills from both the baseline and at the net. Early in the match, Shelton used his strong serve to his advantage, firing 16 aces.
Shelton won 84% of the points when his first serve landed. Up until this round of the tournament, the former Gator had never failed a service game, which shows where the majority of his points were coming from.
This year’s US Open has new rules about how and when spectators can move around the stands during play. Tennis is a sport based on respect, and as such, rules are in place to encourage spectators to respect the game.
Such rules state that no conspicuous noises or distractions are to be made during points. One of the rule changes this year involved relaxing spectator movement between points.
Bautista Agut was not happy with the movement and distraction of the spectators in the stands. He spoke to the referee and tried to stop the game. A few points earlier, Bautista Agut made a gesture towards the referee, signaling that he was not happy with the excitement of the fans. After a stoppage, the game resumed and Shelton won the match.
Shelton returns to the court on Friday, August 30, facing fellow American Frances Tiafoe. Shelton and Tiafoe have played each other twice before, once on clay in Houston and the other time in the quarterfinals of last year’s US Open.
In the quarterfinals of the 2023 US Open, Shelton won 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 and 6-2 and advanced to the semifinals, where he lost to number 2 Novak Djokovic.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” Shelton said in an interview with ESPN+. “Obviously we had a battle here last year in the quarterfinals, so I’m sure it will be a popcorn match again.”
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The time and place for Shelton’s next game have yet to be determined.
Contact Carston Handy at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @carston_handy.
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Carston Handy is a third-year journalism major with a concentration in sports and media. He will begin his first semester as a sports reporter at the Alligator in fall 2024. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his fiancée and their dog. He also enjoys playing a variety of sports, including pickleball, basketball, and soccer.
