Ben Shelton opens up on decision to skip the Olympics insisting he made the right call
Ben Shelton strongly believes that he made the correct call in deciding to forego the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris in favour of a full US Open Series.
Shelton advanced to the semi-finals of the New York Slam 12 months ago, but ultimately lost to eventual champion Novak Djokovic 3-6, 2-6, 6-7 in what was the biggest match of his career to date.
After losing to Jannik Sinner in the fourth round of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, Shelton turned his attention to the hardcourt swing in North America.
He first participated in the 2024 Atlanta Open as the top seed, however, he was stunned in the first round falling to qualifier Juncheng Shang 6-7(6), 4-6.
The World No 13 then participated in the Mubadala Citi DC Open, where he advanced past qualifier Radu Albot, Denis Shapovalov, and Brandon Nakashima, losing to Flavio Cobolli in the quarterfinals.
He lost to eventual titlist Alexei Popyrin in the second round of the Canadian Open after defeating Alexander Bublik in the first.
Shelton enjoyed another solid run at the Cincinnati Open, defeating opponents such as Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Reilly Opelka, and Fabian Marozsan, before losing to Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals.
Team USA bagged two medals in the men’s doubles with Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek taking the silver and Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul winning the bronze medal match.
Paul notched the best performance from a US man in the singles as he reached the last eight.
“Really cool to see Tommy and Taylor get that medal, bronze medal in doubles, and obviously Raj and Austin fighting for the gold. I was tuned in, for sure. Also really cool to see my good friend Chris Eubanks get his first Olympics experience,” Shelton said.
Shelton acknowledged his disappointment in missing the Olympics, but he justified his choice to focus on his game because of the intense tennis season’s schedule.
“It was a tough decision, but the way that our schedule is, I think it’s a good decision and a decision that I had to make. The schedule is so long, there’s no breaks. If I was to go back again to Europe, another surface change, I think with where I’m at right now, it just would have been too much,” he added.
Shelton also talked about how he fared in the four hard court competitions he took part in before the US Open.
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Although he admitted that choosing not to compete in the Olympics was a tough choice, in the end he thought it was essential.
“I’m really happy with how these four tournaments have gone. I didn’t perform well in every single one. But making semifinals in Washington after losing first round last year, and quarterfinals in Cincinnati for the first time, I think that my prep for the US Open has gone how I’ve wanted it to go. So yeah, I’m overall happy with my decision . Not one that I wanted to have to make, but necessary,” Ben Shelton added.
Shelton is upbeat about his chances of a dream run in New York after some good results in Ohio.
“I’m really excited. I’m in a really good place after Cincinnati. I thought I played some good ball there . I’m happy with where I am in my season. I feel fresh mentally and physically. Yeah, excited for this week. Obviously my favorite tournament of the year,” Shelton added.
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