Ben Shelton finally ended his three-match losing streak after beating Fabian Marozsan to reach the 2024 ASB Classic quarterfinals.
Last season, the young American either lost early at the event or made a sensational run like he did at the Australian Open and then later in the season at the US Open.
He also won the Japan Open in Tokyo, which gave him a chance to qualify for the ATP Finals, but he needed some more wins to secure that, and those did not happen, as he lost in his first match in Vienna, and then also in Paris.
That meant that the 21-year-old ended the year on a two-match losing streak, and at the start of the new season, he extended it to three with an opening-round loss in Brisbane.
After that, Shelton made his way to New Zealand, where he entered the 2024 ASB Classic in Auckland as the top seed at the tournament, granting him a first-round bye and a subsequent second-round match against Fabian Marozsan, who overcame Gael Monfils in the first round.
Despite starting on the back foot, as Marozsan managed to break in the opening game, the American quickly regrouped and broke his opponent two times in the opening set to win it 6-3.
The second set of the match was much more Shelton-like. The 21-year-old hit six aces, won 81% of points after his first serve, and hit a total of 14 winners while making only one unforced error.
As a result, he never faced a break point in the second set, and converting one of the chances that he had was enough to win the second set, and the match, 6-3, 6-4, reaching the 2024 ASB Classic quarterfinals.
Up next, the American will play against Roberto Carballes Baena, with his possible semifinal opponent being the winner of the match between Alexandre Muller and Taro Daniel.
Ben Shelton vs Fabian Marozsan Match Stats:
| Ben Shelton | Fabian Marozsan | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Aces | 1 |
| 3 | Double Faults | 4 |
| 68% | First Serve % | 65% |
| 80% | Points Won After First Serve % | 75% |
| 47% | Points Won After Second Serve % | 47% |
| 3/8 | Break Point Conversion | 1/3 |
| 30 | Winners | 11 |
| 8 | Unforced Errors | 8 |
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