Ben Shelton was the runner-up to Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard at the 2024 Swiss Indoors in Basel, but the American had nothing but praise for his opponent afterward.
Shelton played superb tennis throughout the tournament to reach the final. He began with a straight-sets win against Tomas Martin Etcheverry, although he was incorrectly awarded a point in that contest.
After overcoming home hero and three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka in the next round, Shelton reached the semifinal by beating Andrey Rublev in three entertaining sets in Basel.
Shelton sealed a spot in the third final of his career with a straight-sets triumph against Arthur Fils. Mpetshi Perricard, another young and talented Frenchman, stood between Shelton and the title.
The difference between Mpetshi Perricard and Fils is the former possesses the best serve in tennis right now. Standing at over six feet and six inches, the 21-year-old's delivery is unstoppable at its best.
Mpetshi Perricard had not been broken once heading into the final. Denis Shapovalov was the only man in Basel to create break points against him, but he could not convert any of his three chances.
Shelton did not fare any better than the Frenchman's previous opponents. He generated no opportunities to break Mpetshi Perricard during a 6-7, 4-6 defeat, his first loss in an ATP Tour final.
Last year's US Open semifinalist is a supremely talented player, which is why Patrick McEnroe thinks he is the American player with the best chance of matching Carlos Alcaraz, but the 22-year-old never got an opportunity to show his complete game in the final in Basel.
However, Shelton was not bitter after the match. He warmly congratulated Mpetshi Perricard, calling him great for the sport, and joked that he almost killed himself trying to return his serve.
"First of all, obviously, I wanna congratulate Gio on a great week on a great match today. I almost killed myself trying to return your serve. So many other parts of your game have improved so much and you're such a great young talent and so good for the sport."
Shelton also paid tribute to Mpetshi Perricard's breakthrough season as a whole, which has seen him rise from outside the Top 200 to his current position of inside the Top 30 in the rankings.
"It's cool to see so many different styles out here on tour, and you add so much so congrats on an outstanding breakout season going from 200 in the world to 30 in the world in 10 months is something to be very very proud of."
Mpetshi Perricard is one of the few players who is a better server than Shelton. The American's delivery is among the best on the ATP Tour and regularly gets him out of pressurized situations in matches.
Shelton's final tournament of 2024 is the Paris Masters. If he defeats Corentin Moutet in the opening round, this year's Houston Open champion will face Jannik Sinner in the second round.