With Jannik Sinner absent, Novak Djokovic suffering an early exit, and Carlos Alcaraz making a comeback after spending over four months on the sidelines, Ben Shelton has emerged as a leading contender to end the 23-year wait for an American man to win a Grand Slam title at the 2026 US Open.
However, Shelton made an alarming start to his campaign at the New York Major, prompting a blunt assessment from Andy Roddick. Incidentally, Roddick remains the last American man to win a Major title, having lifted the trophy at the 2003 US Open.
What Andy Roddick Said About Ben Shelton’s ‘Nervy’ First Set at the US Open
Shelton arrived at the US Open on the back of contrasting results at the two ATP Masters 1000 events in the lead-up to the Major. Although he successfully defended his title at the Canadian Open, the 23-year-old subsequently lost to Jaime Faria in his opening match at the Cincinnati Open.
As he looks to win his maiden Grand Slam title, the American locked horns with Tallon Griekspoor in his opening match in New York. Shelton made a shaky start, suffering a break of serve in the opening game. He continued to struggle as Griekspoor produced a strong display to take the first set 6-1.
However, the world No. 9 made an impressive turnaround, winning the second set 6-1 to level the score. With rain forcing the closure of the roof at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Shelton continued to improve his level and ultimately claimed a 1-6, 6-1, 7-6(3), 6-2 victory.
Assessing the clash on his “Served” podcast, Roddick pointed out that the home favorite made a “horrible” and error-prone start to the match. He revealed that he was even scared for Shelton as the 23-year-old appeared to struggle with nerves, but credited him for turning things around after the poor first set.
“Watched Ben Shelton get a win over Griekspoor. Ben played horrendously in the first set. Got broken three times. Had seven winners, 13 unforced errors. I was legit a little scared for him. I was calling the match with Chris Fowler at night session. He did a really good job steadying the ship because, and he would tell you the same thing, it was a horrible, nervy set of tennis. He did a good job kind of flipping it,” Roddick said.
Shelton himself acknowledged feeling nervous at the start of the encounter before settling into his game in the second set. He also praised Griekspoor as a formidable opponent while reflecting on the challenging opening set.
“I started off with a little bit of nerves tonight. I found my rhythm at some point through the second set,” Shelton said in his on-court interview. “Obviously a lot of credit to Tallon, he’s a difficult player to player to play. He doesn’t give you a lot of rhythm. He has an attacking game style and I found things really difficult for the first set tonight.”
No. 8 seed Ben Shelton will be hoping for a more straightforward victory in the second round of the US Open. However, another tough threat awaits, with Hubert Hurkacz standing in the way. If the American advances to the third round, he will face either Denis Shapovalov or Luca Van Assche at his home Slam.
