Ben Shelton had a hard time at the 2026 BNP Paribas Open in the Indian Wells Tennis Garden due to a persistent illness. This issue hindered his performance in this year’s first ATP Masters 1000 event, where he suffered a third-round exit at the hands of fellow American Learner Tien.
Ben Shelton’s Reassuring Message Before the 2026 Miami Open
Now that the high-octane fortnight at Tennis Paradise is concluded with Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka emerging as the champions, Shelton has turned his focus to his home event, the 2026 Miami Open.
Shelton started the 2026 season strong, reaching the quarterfinals at both the ASB Classic and the Australian Open. Things changed drastically in his home country, as he reached the quarterfinals of the Dallas Open and defeated the top-ranked American, Taylor Fritz, to lift the title.
The World No. 9‘s momentum halted after an amazing week in Texas as he suffered a bad cold during the Indian Wells Open. He was visibly struggling during his matches, especially in his second-round match against Reilly Opelka, when he coughed and appeared severely fatigued, prompting him to receive an oral spray treatment from the tournament physio.
His condition worsened during his third-round match against Tien, where he lost 6-7(3), 6-4, 3-6 despite giving his opponent a tough fight. Even the World No. 21 himself noted that Shelton “wasn’t feeling that great” during the match.
As the former World No. 5 is fully healed, he has shifted his focus to the upcoming ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami, which is very close to his hometown of Gainesville. He shared an Instagram post just days before the action commences at Hard Rock Stadium, writing,
“Flu took me out the last couple weeks… Miami 🔜 Can’t wait to battle at home 🌴”
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This message from the American shows that he is feeling much better now and is ready to deliver a dominant performance on his home turf. Shelton was in the best form of his career during the 2025 North American hardcourt swing, where he won the first Masters 1000 title in Toronto.
However, a left shoulder injury at the US Open against Adrian Mannarino halted his momentum, which was the first time he retired from a match, ending his 178-match streak.
Shelton made his Miami Open debut in 2023, entering as the 32nd seed and receiving a bye in the first round. He was then defeated by the Frenchman Mannarino 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the second round. Notably, he teamed with fellow American Tommy Paul in men’s doubles, reaching the quarterfinals that year.
He then returned to the venue next year as the 16th seed and defeated Martin Landaluce 6-3, 6-4 in the second round. However, he was again unable to make a deep run at the tournament, bowing to the 23rd seed Lorenzo Musetti 4-6, 5-7 in the third round. His doubles partnership with Christopher Eubanks the same year ended in the Round of 16 match despite winning the first set.
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Last year, Shelton entered the tournament as the 13th seed and was defeated by Coleman Wong 6-7, 6-2, 6-7 in a gruelling second-round match. His doubles campaign ended in the first match as well, where he teamed up with Alex Michelsen to face the American-Australian duo of Sebastian Stan and Jordan Thompson.
So far, the Gainesville-native hasn’t been able to leave his mark at his home tournament and will be looking forward to making a deep run at the tournament this year, possibly even lifting the title at the second leg of the Sunshine Doubles.
