Former Florida men’s tennis star Ben Shelton opened play at the US Open with a win against Austria’s Dominic Thiem. Thiem, a former Grand Slam Champion, won the US Open title in 2020.
In the first set, both Thiem and Shelton held serve throughout the first nine games. At one point, Shelton was down Love, 40, but was eventually able to rally back to break service and win the first set 6-4.
Shelton got off to a hot start in the second set, winning the first three games in a row. In game six of the second set, Shelton lost out on a commanding 5-1 lead on a forced forehand error. The game went to four deuces and stood as the longest game of the entire match. Despite losing the game, Shelton went on to win the set 6-2.
In the third and final set, Thiem nearly came back to force a fourth set. However, Shelton came out on top, winning the match 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 in one hour and 50 minutes. At no point did Shelton’s service break in his victory.
The matchup marks the second-straight year Shelton and Thiem have met at the US Open. In last year’s Round of 64, Shelton bested Thiem 7-6 (1), 1-0, before Thiem was forced to retire.
Next for Shelton is Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut Aug. 28th. Shelton and Agut met this year in the Australian Open, where Shelton won the match 6-2, 7-6 (2), 7-5.
The time and court for this match are to be determined.
Contact Carston Handy at chandy@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter at @carston_handy.
Max Tucker is a junior transfer student at UF. After obtaining his A.A. in Journalism from Santa Fe College in 2023, he chose further his education at Florida's College of Journalism and Communications. Max is currently pursuing his Bachelor of Science in Journalism with a specialization in sports and media. He enjoys golfing and going to the beach with his friends in his free time.
