Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz Just Broke 19-Year Drought for US Tennis
World No.6 Ben Shelton joined his fellow American Taylor Fritz in the field after qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time in his career. It has been a successful season for the young American as he reached his maiden Grand Slam semifinals at the 2025 Australian Open before succumbing to the former World No.1 and eventual champion Jannik Sinner.
The Florida-based player also reached the second week of the 2025 Roland Garros and Wimbledon but was unable to get past the eventual champions, Carlos Alcaraz in Paris and Sinner in SW19, on both occasions.
Heading into his Round of 16 encounter against Andrey Rublev at the 2025 Rolex Paris Masters, Shelton was aware that a victory would guarantee a place for him in the last eight. Following a straight-sets win over the Russian, the 23-year-old secured his place in Turin and joined his compatriot Fritz in the field.
The pair ended a 19-year-old drought at the ATP Finals over the US Tennis as they sealed their spots. It will be the first time since 2006 that the prestigious event will have two Americans in the top eight, with Andy Roddick and James Blake being the last pair to do so.
Shelton and Fritz have been the top-ranked Americans over the last three years and have made headway over the last 24 months. Post achieving the feat, Fritz bowed out of the final ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Bercy following his loss to Alexander Bublik, but Shelton marched through to the quarter-finals.
Taylor Fritz Reveals the Proudest Moment of His Tennis Career
Taylor Fritz revealed that beating Rafael Nadal in the final of the 2022 Indian Wells was the proudest moment of his tennis career to capture his sole ATP Masters 1000 title.
Asked by Dexerto in a Q/A interview, the Californian picked the triumph over another career highlight and said:
“I’d say the proudest moment of my career is probably winning Indian Wells in 2022 for sure. I think making the US Open final is obviously a really big achievement. Maybe even bigger, but it’s just ending the tournament with a win just feels, you know, it feels a lot more satisfying.”
Fritz has been a mainstay in the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the last couple of years and will make his third appearance in the Nitto ATP Finals, after previously appearing in 2022 and 2024.
While the American pushed Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals in the 2022 edition, he went one step further in 2024 but eventually lost to Sinner in the final. Heading into Turin for the third time, the 28-year-old will look to go one better and become the first American since Pete Sampras in 1999 to claim the trophy.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Oct 30, 2025, where it first appeared in the Tennis section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
