Ben Shelton just finished up his Japan Open experience, and he's already en route to Vienna for his next adventure.
Shelton had a tremendous stay in Asia, putting together some impressive runs in Shanghai and Tokyo. First, he made it to the Shanghai Masters quarter-final, where he narrowly lost to compatriot Sebastian Korda in a bid to advance to his maiden ATP 1000 semi-final.
Things improved in Tokyo as he made it to the Japan Open final and bested Aslan Karatsev to win his maiden ATP trophy. It belongs to the 500 series, which is a pretty big one for a maiden trophy, and it's quite significant.
It leaves him in the race for the 2023 ATP Finals in Turin, which seemed crazy just a few weeks ago, but he's played really well, and here we are. Towards that goal, Shelton is already traveling to Vienna, where he'll play next at the 2023 Vienna Open, despite many expecting him to withdraw because of the long flight and jetlag.
It's a pretty short turnaround for the youngster, but he's ready. After his triumph in Japan, Shelton admitted that he is tired but hasn't played that many matches this year, so he's ready to finish the year on a high note.
There is plenty to be excited about because even if he doesn't qualify for Turin, and it's unlikely, he'll still play at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah.
It's a pretty compact event and tailor-made for Shelton with a pretty big payout, so why not? The American loves winning, and now that he's gotten a good taste of it, there is no going back.
For now, he'll focus on his next match, to be played on Wednesday against Jannik Sinner. They just played in Shanghai, and the American got the better of Sinner, but it will be much tougher this time around. Sinner is amazing indoors, but so is Shelton, so buckle up.
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