When American Ben Shelton fell short in the Tiburon Challenger final this past month, the teenager left California frustrated that he had lost in all three ATP Challenger Tour finals in which he had competed this year. But a new mindset aided Shelton this week as he grabbed his maiden Challenger crown.
Shelton, who is one of five Challenger champions this week, defeated close friend Christopher Eubanks 7-6(4), 7-5 in the final at the Jonathan Fried Pro Challenger in Charlottesville, Virginia to capture his long-awaited title.
“I started to realise that when I looked back on the film, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was,” Shelton said. “I really tried to focus on the things I can control, stop worrying about the little things such as how well I’m hitting my forehand and instead just compete really hard.”
After runner-up finishes in Rome (Georgia), Chicago, and Tiburon, the 20-year-old dropped just one set all week in Charlottesville en route to the title. The former University of Florida standout is the fifth player to win the NCAA singles title and a Challenger title in the same season and the first since Steve Johnson in 2012.
“I went in [to this week] with a mindset that I was going to out compete everybody,” Shelton said. “I was going to bring more energy than everyone I played. I think that was a really big part of my success this week.”
Ben Shelton celebrates winning his first ATP Challenger Tour title” />
Ben Shelton celebrates winning his first ATP Challenger Tour title. Credit: Allen Hoover
Shelton is the third #NextGenATP American to claim a Challenger title this year (Zachary Svajda, Emilio Nava). The lefty rises to a career-high No. 128 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.
In Charlottesville doubles action, Britain’s Julian Cash and Henry Patten triumphed to win a season-leading seventh Challenger title, the first time a duo has captured more than six Challenger titles in a season since Max Purcell and Luke Saville (7) in 2019.
In Bergamo, Italy, Finland’s Otto Virtanen advanced through qualifying en route to claiming his maiden Challenger title, defeating Jan-Lennard Struff 6-2, 7-5 in the final at the Trofeo Perrel – Faip.
The 21-year-old is the first Finnish Challenger champion since Emil Ruusuvuori in 2019. Virtanen is just the second player from Finland to win a Challenger title in the past 10 years.
“I had a chance of not even coming here,” Virtanen said. “I played the doubles final…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Tennis – ATP World Tour…