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  • Riedi Relishes Maiden Challenger Title; Shelton Continues Surge

    Riedi Relishes Maiden Challenger Title; Shelton Continues Surge

    Two #NextGenATP youngsters, Leandro Riedi and Ben Shelton, shined at indoor hard court events on the ATP Challenger Tour this week.

    Switzerland’s Riedi advanced through qualifying en route to claiming his maiden title at the Helsinki Challenger while Shelton continued his historic Challenger Tour run at the Champaign (Illinois) Challenger, where he collected his third straight Challenger title and extended his match-winning streak to 15.

    Riedi defeated Czech Tomas Machac 6-3, 6-1 in the final at the HPP Open in Finland. The 20-year-old won seven matches in eight days to win the Challenger 90 event.

    “It’s the best feeling in the world,” Riedi said following the title. “My goal all week was to, no matter what, stay positive and I think that’s what got me here.”

     

    Riedi has made a sudden impact on the Challenger circuit since transitioning from juniors. The Swiss captured the 2020 Australian Open boys’ doubles title (w/ Nicholas David Ionel) and fell short to countryman Dominic Stricker in the 2020 Roland Garros boys’ singles final to finish a standout junior career. Earlier this season, Riedi upset top-seeded Maxime Cressy at the Lugano Challenger before advancing to his first Challenger final (l. Nardi).

    The Helsinki crown lifts Riedi to a career-high 197 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

    Shelton, 20, battled a slow start in Sunday’s final to take down Australian Aleksandar Vukic 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 and triumph at the Paine Schwartz Partners Challenger.

    The 2022 NCAA singles champion is the youngest player in Challenger history to win three titles in as many weeks and the second American to do so (Sam Querrey ‘14 Napa, Sacramento, Tiburon). The former University of Florida star is one of 12 players who has mastered the feat, including Benjamin Bonzi, who accomplished it last year (St. Tropez, Cassis, Rennes).

    “I feel pretty lucky, I didn’t expect to play 15 matches in three weeks and my body held up,” Shelton said. “It’s encouraging to me that I can play this many matches and be alright.”

    Challenger Win Percentage Leaders (2022)

    Player W-L Pct.
    Jack Draper (GBR) 24-4 85.7
    Wu Yibing (CHN) 23-4 85.2
    Ben Shelton (USA) 35-8 81.4
    Quentin Halys (FRA) 43-10 81.1
    Ugo Humbert (FRA) 19-5 79.2

    After starting the year at No. 573, Shelton has collected a 35-8 Challenger-match record, which has helped him climb to a career-high 97.

    “It’s definitely gone quick,” Shelton said regarding his Top 100 debut. “I’m going to take this offseason and slow down a bit, enjoy myself, and also focus on some things I can improve.”

    In Sao Leopoldo, Brazil, Juan Pablo Varillas escaped a three hour, 12 minute marathon final, where he fought from 1/5 down in the opening set tie-break before winning six straight points to steal the opening set and eventually defeated Argentine Facundo Bagnis, 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-4.

    The Peruvian, who is a three-time Challenger finalist this season, has made at least the semi-finals in three of his past four Challenger tournaments (Ambato, Guayaquil). Following the title at the Challenger Dove Men+Care Sao Leo Open de Tenis, Varillas is ten spots shy of tying his career high mark 97, which he reached in August 2022.

    Juan Pablo Varillas celebrates winning the 2022 Sao Leopoldo Challenger.
    Juan Pablo Varillas celebrates winning the 2022 Sao Leopoldo Challenger. Credit: Giovani Paim/Urge Criativa

    “I am very happy to win another Challenger title,” Varillas said. “I believe I had an incredible and positive week in every way. I think I accomplished what I was looking for this week. It was a great final, a very tough match that was decided in the details.”

    In May, Varillas made his Grand Slam debut at Roland Garros, where he held a two sets to love lead on then-World No. 9 Felix Auger-Aliassime, who eventually recovered to win in five sets.

    Japan’s Yosuke Watanuki rallied from a set down to win his second Challenger title, both on home soil at the Kobe Challenger. The 24-year-old defeated Frederico Ferreira Silva 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-4 in the final to claim the Hyogo Noah Challenger.

    “I just fought and fought, I’m so happy to win,” Watanuki said. “I was a little tight, Fredrico played well, but I was so happy to get the final point.”

    Bourbon Beans Dome, home of the Kobe Challenger.
    Bourbon Beans Dome, home of the Kobe Challenger. Credit: Kathryn Riley

    Watanuki, who is coached by his brother Yusuke, is just two spots shy of tying his career-high 171, which he reached in March 2019. Earlier this season, the Saitama native reached his first Tour-level quarter-final at the ATP 250 event in Lyon (l. de Minaur).

    Vasek Pospisil is in the Top 100 for the first time since October 2021 following his title at the Challenger Banque Nationale de Drummondville in Canada, where he defeated American Michael Mmoh 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-4.

    Pospisil is a four-time Challenger finalist this season, including at the Quimper Challenger, where he was crowned champion (d. Barrere).

    Vasek Pospisil triumphs on home soil at the 2022 Drummondville Challenger.
    Vasek Pospisil triumphs on home soil at the 2022 Drummondville Challenger. Credit: Sarah-Jäde Champagne/Agence KICK Inc.

    The former World No. 25 won the 2014 Wimbledon doubles title (w/ Jack Sock) and the following year the Canadian reached the singles quarter-final at the All England Club (l. Murray).

    Pospisil, who was seeded third at the Drummondville Challenger, will next represent Canada in their quarter-final Davis Cup tie against Germany.

    In Drummondville doubles action, the British duo Julian Cash and Henry Patten dropped just one set all week en route to capturing a record-tying eighth Challenger doubles title.

  • Shelton Soaks Up Lessons Learned On Challenger Tour

    Shelton Soaks Up Lessons Learned On Challenger Tour

    Still very early in his pro career, Ben Shelton is not letting any teachable moment go unlearned as he continues to make big progress on the ATP Challenger Tour.

    Following heartbreaking losses in the Rome (Georgia), Chicago, and Tiburon Challenger finals, Shelton was left looking for answers on why he hadn’t lifted a Challenger trophy yet.

    “I got to a point where I felt hopeless on court,” Shelton told Challenger Tour commentator Mike Cation. “Second round of Fairfield and second round of Las Vegas, I felt like I was the one getting attacked. Especially against Earnesto Escobedo [in Las Vegas].

    “I’m okay with losing, but if I don’t do everything I can competitively to give myself a chance to win, that really upsets me. Coming out of Las Vegas, I was like, ‘That’s never going to happen again’. I’m not going to go down in the dumps and not give a full fight.”

     

    Shelton was determined to get rid of his championship match struggles and it was only a matter of time before the lefty would be crowned champion.

    A close friend offered Shelton some help. Christopher Eubanks, World No. 120 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, had a key conversation with Shelton at the Charlottesville Challenger. Little did the two know that they would meet in Sunday’s championship match.

    “It was actually Chris [Eubanks] who told me a couple days before the final, he said, ‘You can’t help yourself with those [negative] thoughts that come into your mind’, Shelton said. “They are going to come, right after the point, you’re going to have a reaction, but how do you flip the script before you start the next point?’ When I was upset this week, I went into the next point bouncing, getting the negative energy out and turning it into a fire in my belly.”

    Shelton survived the former Georgia Tech University standout 7-6(4), 7-5 and following the match they didn’t go into the locker room and call it a day. Instead, Eubanks drove Shelton to the airport so he could travel to the Knoxville Challenger.

    Christopher Eubanks (left) and Ben Shelton following the Charlottesville Challenger final.
    Christopher Eubanks (left) and Ben Shelton following the Charlottesville Challenger final. Credit: Allen Hoover

    “There’s not a guy I would’ve rather played in the final,” Shelton said. “Nobody really understands what Chris has done for me. The support he’s given me is unmatched. He’s a selfless human being and a big brother to me.”

    Shelton, who is coached by his father (Bryan, former World No. 55), has been building upon his NCAA singles title in May. The former University of Florida star is already making a sudden impact on the Challenger Tour. Since claiming the college crown, Shelton has reached seven Challenger semi-finals, including this week in Knoxville, and boasts a 28-8 Challenger match record in 2022. In Charlottesville, the 20-year-old dropped just one set en route to the title.

    “I went in 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.”

    Tennis fans have been keeping an eye on the rising American star. This summer, Shelton earned his maiden Tour-level win at the ATP 250 event in Atlanta (d. Ramanathan). The following month, Shelton stunned then-World No. 5 Casper Ruud at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati and made his Grand Slam debut at the US Open. And Shelton’s game is only improving.

    Ben Shelton
    Ben Shelton at the 2022 Western & Southern Open. Credit: Mike Lawrence/ATP Tour

    “One piece [that has improved] is the return,” Shelton said. “If I played the final against Chris [Eubanks] in June, I don’t know how many returns I would’ve put in play. I think my defence has improved. I’m pretty good when I’m on offence but I was looking at some stats early in the summer and I was pretty poor in being able to win points when I got behind in the rally.

    “I have a better understanding of how to use my serve and not just go after it hard every single time but mix it around, hitting some slow sliders from time to time.”

    Shelton, who started the year as No. 573 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, is now at a career-high 128. The American hopes to use his newfound mindset to continue imposing his will on opponents.

    “It starts with the mentality of what you do in between the points,” Shelton said. “I’m not dwelling on every single point whether I win or lose. If I make a bad error, I can laugh it off… I’m just taking everything that I can get right now, enjoying everything that I have and not stressing too much.”

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