Ben Shelton will not join fellow American Tommy Paul in the French Open Quarter Final after falling to second-seeded Carlos Alcaraz in the four sets of 7-6, 6-3, 4-6 and 6-4. The match lasted 3 hours and 19 minutes.
Shelton, the number 13 seed, quietly did not disappear. He challenged the 2024 French Open Champion from the start, winning with his serve and showing some sw steps when he broke his opponent’s serve. Shelton also showed some accuracy and nailed some shots just inside the line, returning the crosscoats of others that were out of reach of Alcaraz.
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During the second set, Shelton lost a return that appeared to Alcaraz wearing a racket and sent back over the net. However, Alcaraz admitted to the judge that he would actually let go of the racket when contacted. This is against the rules. Therefore, the points were awarded to Shelton.
Despite Shelton’s rebellion, Alcaraz never wavered and did not mix the attacks well. A dominant forehand followed by tricky drop shots and run to the net, keeping Shelton volatile and guessing what’s coming next.
However, in the third set, Shelton won by blowing a focus-blowing forehand shot past Alcaraz, in the 98-107 miles range. Alcaraz may have lost a bit of focus after winning the first two sets, and Shelton took advantage of the opportunity.
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If Alcaraz lost focus, it seemed that Shelton would bring him back to attention by winning that third set. Shelton defeated Alcaraz’s serve in the fourth game of the third set, but Alcaraz responded quickly by defeating Shelton’s next two serves and controlling the match. His new focus showed himself by winning long 15-stroke exchanges.
Shelton advanced to the fourth round with Roland Garos for the first time in his career.
After the match, Alkaraz admitted that his concentration wobbled at times, and when he sacrificed the set to him, he almost lost his composure.
“Today, I opposed myself and my heart,” Alkaraz said in a post-match interview. “I tried to calm myself down. After a while, I was mad. I was mad at myself. It’s not really good, but I’m really happy that those thoughts don’t let me play with them.”
The victory marks Alcaraz’s 11th straight game at the French Open, facing Paul in the quarter-finals on Tuesday. The second straight tournament title placed him alongside Rafael Nadal and Gustavocateur as the only man defending the French Open Championship in the 2000s.
