Ben Shelton and Jack Draper closing in on historic rankings breakthroughs
Being crowned as the best player in your country is all the more demanding when you hail from a major tennis nation, yet rising stars Ben Shelton and Jack Draper are within touching distance of a major milestone as they head into the clay court season.
American No 3 Shelton is making good progress in the Houston clay court event, with his run to the latter stages of that competition giving him a chance to make a further rise up the ATP rankings.
Big-serving Shelton openly admits he is still learning his trade on clay, but his power-packed game is clearly having an impact after he beat fellow American Brandon Nakashima 7-5, 7-6(9) to move into the last four in Houston.
“Definitely not an easy matchup today with the way Brandon was serving and playing,” said world No 16.
“He made things really difficulty and I was definitely feeling the pressure in that tie-break. But I’m really happy to get through. I think the crowd helped me out a good bit today… I’m just really grateful being out here.”
Shelton has opted against making a rapid transatlantic dash to try and play in the Monte-Carlo Masters next week and while that may affect his ATP Rankings hopes, there is a strong possibility that the 21-year-old will add his name to an illustrious list by becoming America’s No 1 player in the next few weeks.
Tommy Paul is one place ahead Paul in the latest ATP rankings, with Taylor Fritz two further places in front.
Yet the form Shelton is showing suggests he has a chance to make a mark on European clay courts and he should be a potent threat with his power-packed game on grass courts in June and July.
Shelton may not need deep runs in upcoming events to overhaul Fritz and Paul to claim the US No 1 ranking, with his two domestic rivals struggling with form and fitness issues.
A similar domestic battle is set to take hold in Great Britain, with Jack Draper now close to claiming his domestic No 1 title.
READ MORE: Roger Federer’s stunningly successful On shoes venture set to go to the next level
Cameron Norrie has been British No 1 since October 2021, but he may be powerless to halt Draper’s rise over the next few weeks.
The ATP Rankings work on a system that sees players defend the ranking points they earned from the same week a year ago and that is where Draper has a big advantage over Norrie.
The 22-year-old Brit was struggling with injuries this time last year and missed the entire grass court season.
If Draper can stay fit and show the kind of form he is capable of, his coronation as British No 1 may be imminent and it could come before the grass court season gets underway in June.
“I had to learn a lot about myself last year, and I dropped outside the top 100,” said Draper.
“I had to grind myself back. I feel like I’m just a lot stronger mentally and I have a lot more perspective of being in a good position.
“I was gutted to miss Wimbledon last summer. Watching it on TV and seeing all the hype around it was tough. Not being able to play at Queen’s and Eastbourne was also frustrating.
“In terms of my tennis, I feel like I’m improving. I’m trying to come forward more.
“I’m trying to win the points instead of letting the other players make a mistake or something, which is what I feel like I was trying to do last year. I feel like both things I’ve improved.
“I have spoken about rankings goals with my coach and if I can stay injury-free and stay on the trajectory I have been on since last summer, there is no reason why I can’t be ranked in the top 20 by the end of this year.
“That’s my goal, that’s where I want to be. I know I can go a lot further than that, but one step at a time and that’s a good goal for me.”
