Ben Shelton reveals pre-Australian Open tournament plans for 2026

Ben Shelton has put together the best Grand Slam season of his career in 2025, building on his progress from the previous year with two deep runs.

Shelton opened his year with a strong showing at the Australian Open, reaching the semifinals. He picked up wins over Lorenzo Musetti and Gael Monfils along the way before losing to eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

After a fourth-round exit to Carlos Alcaraz at Roland Garros, he reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals but was again stopped by Sinner.

At the US Open, he started well with two straight-set victories but then had to retire in round three against Adrian Mannarino due to a shoulder injury. That issue kept him out for most of the Asian swing.

With only a few weeks left before players start heading back to Australia, Shelton recently shared how he plans to get ready for next season.

Shelton will train in Florida ahead of 2026 campaign

The American confirmed that he would stay home in Florida and do “good work” on hard courts before returning Down Under next month. He told Tennis Nations: “I’ll probably stay home in Florida through December and get some good work there.”

He continued: “Not sure if I’ll go out early or just go straight to Auckland and play there [Auckland Open], but I’m excited. It’s one of my favourite times of year being down under so it should be fun.”

Ben Shelton chooses ASB Classic for Australian Open warm-up

Ben Shelton has revealed on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that he’ll return to the ASB Classic in Auckland to kick off his 2026 season. It will mark his fourth straight appearance at the event.

The ATP 250 tournament gets underway on 12 January, just a week before the Australian Open begins on the 18th. At that time of year, players also have the option of playing in the Adelaide International.