Top 10 debut confirmed for Ben Shelton: Cruises past Jiri Lehecka to reach Semis at Stuttgart

Ben Shelton secured his first-ever spot in the top 10 after an impressive performance against Czech player Jiri Lehecka in the quarterfinals of the Stuttgart Open. The American already seems to be sending a message to the Tour with a truly impressive level on grass-court: he lost barely 4 points on his serve, three of them being double faults.

Undoubtedly, grass benefits big servers, although there's much more to do than just dominate with the serve. Shelton had impressive statistics, winning 100% of the points on his first serve, a total of 18 aces, and 25 winners, leaving very little room for exchanges during the match.

The triumph will have double importance for the American, as it places him at World No. 10 in the live rankings, and none of the players still in competition now have a chance to surpass him (the only one who could have was Daniil Medvedev, who exited the Libema Open in the quarterfinals).

Shelton entered the top 20 for the first time in 2023, and since then has been hovering around the high positions – reaching a career-best ranking of No. 12 last week. Details were missing to enter the top 10, and Shelton fulfilled his responsibility in Stuttgart.

In the last year, Shelton has not won any titles, although he reached two ATP 500 finals (Basel Open and Munich), and the Australian Open semifinals among his main results. He now holds a 19-11 record for the season and is preparing for the second final of his season – just two months later, having lost in the Munich Open final to Alexander Zverev.

The 22-year-old American's next opponent will be precisely the first seed Alexander Zverev, against whom he has a negative head-to-head record of 0-2. Shelton is seeking his first grass-court final and aims to start his journey towards Wimbledon in the best possible way.

Match Statistics Shelton vs. Lehecka