Ben Shelton makes frightening Jannik Sinner claim after Wimbledon loss

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner often resembles a cyborg with his consistent shotmaking and lack of visible emotions, as he routinely causes opponents to make mistakes while staying unmoved. 

To onlookers, Sinner's monotonous, risk-free playing style may appear dull. But to his opponents, it's the equivalent of overcoming a machine.

In Wednesday's Wimbledon quarterfinal, Sinner was flawless in his straight-sets win over Ben Shelton, committing just one double fault and 17 unforced errors, compared to his opponent's six and 38, respectively. The Italian won a mind-blowing 67 percent of his second serve points and 36 percent of his receiving points (36/101), while Shelton managed 41 percent and 19 percent (16/86) in those exact metrics. 

By all accounts, it was not a fair fight, and Shelton knows it. After his sixth consecutive loss to Sinner, the American made a frightening claim that should alarm the ATP circuit.

"His ball speed is really high. Never seen anything like it," Shelton said of Sinner, via ATP Tour. "You don't see anything like it when you're going through the draw. When you play him, it's almost like things are in [two times] speed. I'm usually pretty good at adjusting to that speed. It's difficult when a guy's hitting the ball that big, that consistently off both wings, and serving the way he is."

Shelton looked visibly deflated after his loss, a feeling that many others on the Tour have experienced after playing Sinner over the last 24 months or so. The alarming part is that Sinner, 23, has barely scratched the surface of his potential and is still refining his game to fare better on grass and clay courts.

The World No. 1 has lost only four matches since August 2024, three of which were against Carlos Alcaraz. The budding rivals are primed to meet again in Sunday's Wimbledon final, less than a month after their epic showdown at Roland-Garros. While Sinner will face Novak Djokovic — whom he has defeated four times in a row — in Friday's semifinal, Alcaraz will have to contend with Taylor Fritz. Oddsmakers expect them to handle their business and renew their rivalry.