Ben Shelton recently received support from former ATP pro Sam Querrey after his early loss at the Miami Open. The latter supported the American and stated that there was nothing to worry about his form.
After winning the Dallas Open, Shelton faced consecutive losses in both the Indian Wells and Miami Open. His most recent outing came at Miami on March 22, where he competed against Alexander Shevchenko just after recovering from the flu. The American started the clash on a strong note, winning the first set; however, the second and the tiebreaker set were dominated by the Kazakhstani player.
The upset ended Shelton’s journey in the first round itself. Days after the match, Querrey opened up about why the world No. 9 has nothing to worry about despite the early loss.
Praising his form in all the other tournaments that he competes in, the former player backed the American by stating that he himself always thought Miami was a tough tournament to play.
Emphasizing how the American played immediately after battling the flu, he said:
“Yeah, I honestly didn’t watch this, but Ben is still like he still throws in some of those tough losses or stretches during the years, but I feel like Ben just has these massive peaks like seven times a year, basically at every major, you trust him to play well, and then like three or four other times, you know, Dallas or wherever it is, he just plays huge tennis. So, in my opinion, nothing to worry about. Like you said, he was sick,” said Sam Querrey.
He added:
“I always thought Miami was tough to play in. I never played well there. Some people there’s places where you don’t play well. Like maybe Miami is one of those places for Ben for whatever reason, but I trust that at, you know, Monte Carlo, Madrid, the French Open, Wimbledon, he’s going to be ready to go and playing well.”
Ben Shelton opened up about struggling with flu at the Indian Wells
Ben Shelton’s Indian Wells campaign commenced on March 7. He opened his tournament against Reilly Opelka and advanced to the round of 32 after defeating the fellow American.
The world No. 9 met Learner Tien in the second round but fell short of progressing further after losing the tiebreaker round. He played this match while struggling with the flu.
Shelton sat for an interview shortly after his upset and before his Miami Open. He shared his health update and revealed the struggles he endured.
“Yeah, I’m feeling good. I wasn’t in Indian Wells, that was a tough little stretch for me. You know, it’s not easy being sick during the season, our calendar is so long and it doesn’t really slow down for you. So it was unfortunate, unfortunate timing, obviously I love Indian Wells, it’s a great tournament, but I’m excited to be healthy here for Miami and hopefully make something happen,” said Ben Shelton.
He added:
“You know, I was waking up every morning, and I felt like I couldn’t stand, and I didn’t have any energy, so I was just trying to get some free points on my serve. Each day I was hoping I was going to feel a little bit better, which I wasn’t. But yeah, I couldn’t move too much, so just tried to keep the points short.”
Ben Shelton is now expected to compete at the Fayez Sarofim & Co. US Men’s Clay Court Championship. It is scheduled to take place from March 30 to April 5 at the River Oaks Country Club in Houston, Texas.
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