Ben Shelton makes confident ‘genius’ claim about tennis future
Ben Shelton came close to winning his first-ever Grand Slam when he reached the final of the US Open.
Unfortunately for him, he faced an inform Alexander Zverev, who would go on to win his second Grand Slam of the year after his French Open success.
However, this experience has got the American dreaming of winning a Grand Slam and becoming the best in the sport.
Now, Shelton has gone about it, and he believes that one ‘genius’ can help him achieve his ambitions.
Advert
READ NEXT: F1 paddock divided on rule which will impact every single team with meeting date set
Ben Shelton is confident he can become world No. 1
The American is set to take part in the World Four Finals in Turin, with Shelton ranked fourth in the world.
Now, over the past year, he has shown he can compete with the best; however, he believes that he can be the one every tennis player wants to beat, and to get in this position, he has hired Juan Carlos Ferrero as his coach.
Ferrero was the man behind the evolution of Carlos Alcaraz from a starlet to the best tennis player and a multiple Grand Slam winner. So, Shelton is looking for the same success under Ferrero.
In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, the American revealed his plans over the coming years with his new coach.
Shelton said: “The ultimate goal is always to reach the top of tennis and compete for Grand Slams, but that can only happen if you focus on working every day, making small improvements, constantly improving your game. For me, that's always been the priority: reaching a higher level every day, improving a little bit at a time. And that's what I continue to focus on.”
He now believes that his new coach will be a major reason that he can achieve this, as he said: “I think Juan Carlos is a great coach, just as he was a great player. He's a tennis genius. He brings a very positive energy.
“I think he can help me in all aspects of my game and also in the mentality I bring to the court. I also believe he can give me a huge hand in improving as a clay-court player. I'm really looking forward to seeing the collaboration between him and my father as we continue to work towards our goals. We'll start right after the Finals."
Ben Shelton’s hesitation into tennis
The American may be one of the best tennis players in the world right now, but his interest in the sport was not always there.
Shelton has revealed that as a youngster, his interest lay away from the tennis court, before he pivoted back to the sport.
The 24-year-old said: “When I was little, I didn't like tennis. I wanted to stay away from it and I didn't want to play. But then, as I became more and more involved with the sport, I began to fall in love with it.
“Of course, sometimes it can be difficult when your father is also your coach, because it seems like everything always revolves around tennis. But I think we're good at finding a balance, knowing when we need to talk about tennis and when we can just focus on the rest of our lives.
Topics: Tennis, Carlos Alcaraz, US Open
Brendan McGilligan
