Ben Shelton Advances to the National Bank Open Final After Defeating Taylor Fritz
In an exciting American semifinal, Ben Shelton, seeded number four, defeated Taylor Fritz, second seed, with a score of 6-4, 6-3 at the National Bank Open. Shelton will now face Karen Khachanov of Russia, the eleventh seed, who won his semifinal against Alexander Zverev, the top seed.Shelton, 22, is seeking his third ATP Tour title. His previous victories were in Tokyo in 2023 and in Houston last year.I’ve seen a lot of significant improvements in my game this week, that’s what pleases me the most, how I’m executing, how much I’m doubting, how I’m subtracting. There are many things to be proud of, and beating two top 10 players consecutively is huge for me.
Ben Shelton
The match between Shelton and Fritz was delayed 15 minutes due to a problem with the electronic line call system. Khachanov, with seven titles in his career, managed to survive a match point.I’m really excited to see myself executing like this, without wondering if the shot is going to go in or out, but rather expecting it to go in.
Ben Shelton
Zverev, champion of 2017, is ranked number 3 in the world.Today was very close. I was close to the match. If the ball touches the net and falls, we wouldn’t be talking now.
Karen Khachanov
Zverev was the top seed, with Jannik Sinner, the 2023 winner, and Carlos Alcaraz absent from the event.The first set was terrible. I gave him an advantage and he’s too good not to take advantage of it.
Alexander Zverev
