Ben Shelton is on an incredible run in the ongoing BMW Open, and his girlfriend, Trinity Rodman, couldn’t be any happier. Recently, when the 22-year-old lefty beat Botic Van de Zandschulp in the R16, Trinity shared a clip of his winning point on her IG stories with the caption, “Insane .” In the next match, Trinity was spotted in Shelton’s player box alongside his father and coach, Bryan Shelton, as Ben pulled off a stunning comeback with a three-set triumph over Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo. There was a moment in that match that made his girlfriend smile, as Shelton had a narrow escape even after hitting a poor drop shot. What was Shelton’s own reaction to that shot, though?
With an incredible 2-6,7-6(7),6-4 win over Cerundolo, Shelton has not only secured his fourth ATP Tour final and his second on clay, but he has now also become the first American to reach a clay-curt final above the ATP 250 level since Andre Agassi’s heroics at the 2002 ATP Masters in Rome.
Following his impressive fightback against Cerundolo, Shelton said, “It’s a big win for me. To get a win on clay against a guy like that gives me a lot of confidence, and to be in an [ATP] 500 final over here in Europe, I’m really happy. I’ve been playing well here, I love the energy here in Munich, and I’m going to go for that title tomorrow.“
This match had quite a few nervy moments. During the second set, there was an instance when Shelton hit a loose drop shot, which Cerundolo failed to capitalize on. The American later secured the point with an easy return. After his lucky escape, the commentators chuckled, “He (Shelton) got away with another one,” and Rodman had a bright smile on her face.
Later, Tennis Channel shared that moment on their IG handle with the caption, “Crazy recovery @benshelton.” And, responding to that post, Shelton commented, “Worst dropper hit in a professional match, I’d say. Any level .“
Shelton was actually quite impressed with his own performance during his QF match against Luciano Darderi. After securing the straight-set victory in just 1 hour and 13 minutes, he said, “I feel pretty good moving around, sliding, getting into drop shots, defending, playing offensively. I was kind of like a deer on ice a couple of years ago, but I have evolved a lot. I am not the player I want to be yet but I am working towards it for sure.”
Even in this match against Cerundolo, he did manage to impress his fans with his massive forehand rocket, followed by a soft touch in the third set. So, overall, it was a decent performance by the American. But he needs to be firing on all cylinders in the final against Alexander Zverev. What has been the key to success for Shelton in Munich, though?
Ben Shelton figures out the key aspect that was missing in his game in Monte Carlo
Ben Shelton didn’t have a great start to the clay-court swing, as he faced an early exit at the hands of Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in Monte Carlo. However, with this recent win against Cerundolo, he has now improved his career win-loss record to 14-12 on clay. Shelton will now be eyeing his third ATP title and second at the ATP 500 level when he faces off against the top seed and two-time champion (2017,2018) Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s final.
Before that match, Shelton outlined one key aspect that he felt was missing from his performance in Monte Carlo. “It was tough conditions going from really cold to really warm, but it was a hard fight to see who could compete the hardest. I’ve played some great clay court players here, and I’m learning some things from them on the court. I’m not too stressed right now, I’m just competing and enjoying myself. I feel like that was one thing that was lacking when I was playing in Monte Carlo last week,” he said.
Ben Shelton currently trails Zverev by 0-1 in the H2H record. Can he come up with a better performance against the world number 3 on Sunday? Well, Shelton says he’s still learning on clay! “Not everything is straightforward and perfect on the clay. You’re going to get your serve broken more, but you can also break the opponent’s serve more, and you’re going to get some bad bounces, but they are, too. I think dealing with adversity and adapting makes a great court player, and I’m trying to learn day by day,” the American lefty added.
If Alexander Zverev wins this match, he’d equal his countryman Philipp Kohlschreiber’s record tally of three titles in Munich. Can Shelton stop the mighty German in this epic duel on Super Sunday? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
The post ‘Worst Dropper Hit in a Professional Match’- Ben Shelton Becomes His Biggest Critic With a Hilarious Response to His Blunder appeared first on EssentiallySports.