USA’s Ben Shelton in action against Francisco Comesana, of Argentina. Photo / Photosport
Ben Shelton opted for a rare first at the ASB Classic on Wednesday – and it paid off for the American star.
Shelton is the biggest name at this year’s men’s tournament, so it was unusual to see him stepping out for the opening match of the day at 11.30am. In the history of the ASB Classic and its predecessor the Heineken Open, it’s believed the top seed has never played in that slot, with the marquee names usually placed in the mid-afternoon, or often, the first match of the evening session, which suits broadcasters and ensures a larger crowd.
But the world No 8 requested the early start for his second round-match against Argentine Francisco Comesana.
“The sun can get a little bit tricky in the afternoons here,” said Shelton. “So, either you play the night match or you play first on and it’s good sometimes, especially when you’re playing back-to-back days.
“If you’re in the finals here, you’ve got to play every day of the week and it’s good to be on the day schedule if that is the case. [If] you get on the night schedule ... it can get difficult.”
The move worked for Shelton, as he completed an impressive 7-5, 6-4 win over gritty Argentinean Francisco Comesana in 1h 42m. It wasn’t always vintage Shelton, who looked rusty in his first match of the year and took time to find his range on his serve and forehand, but it was encouraging.
World No 68 Comesana, with a distinctive fluorescent pink racket, also stepped up with some clean hitting and often forced Shelton to play another shot.
“It wasn’t perfect,” said Shelton. “I didn’t expect it to be. I competed well and I got better as the match went on. I played a solid match, not getting broken and breaking twice is clean for me.”
The turning point came with Shelton serving at 4-5 in the first set. Some loose tennis gave Comesana two set points at 15-40, as the crowd wondered if Shelton was going to continue his quirky record of never having won his first ATP outing of the year. The 23-year-old saved one with a thunderous serve, then saw a net cord drop the right way for the other.
But Comesana forced another break point with a brilliant backhand pass, before the pivotal moment of the match. After another net cord, Shelton played an angled drop shot that Comesana anticipated, but the Argentine sent his backhand long with the line open. That was the reprieve before Shelton held with a 188km/h ace.
“I got lucky on one of those [set] points,” said Shelton. “I feel like I came up with the goods on the other two. And sometimes that’s all it takes, one point to swing a set and that’s what happened [on Wednesday]. Tennis is a game of very small margins and some days that’s not going to go my way. [On Wednesday] it did and I’m just happy that I have the opportunity now to improve on some things.”
Shelton broke in the next game – accompanied by a big yell of “C’mon!”, as his coach, father Bryan and girlfriend, footballer Trinity Rodman, were on their feet. He then converted his second set point with a wide ace. The next set was more comfortable – with Shelton mostly in control – as he never gave up a break opportunity and forced three of his own. The American played some incredible shots – including a backhand down the line that seemed to defy physics – and displayed his all-court game as he was happy to advance to the net.
“[Those are] things that I’ve been working on,” said Shelton. “I’m volleying really well, doing a lot of stuff well at the net and I want to utilise that, take advantage of it and put pressure on the other guy. It’s a big part of my game plan.”
Wednesday’s match feels like a key result for Shelton, who will only get better from here. He took last year’s early exit – at the hands of Jakub Mensik – hard and now looks well placed for a run here, though his quarter-final opponent, seventh-seed Sebastian Baez, has impressed across his first two matches and overwhelmed Jenson Brooksby 7-5, 6-0 on Wednesday.
“My forehand went in and out at different times in the match and I’m looking at shoring that up, becoming more sure of myself on the first ball forehands and forehands on the rally,” said Shelton of his targeted improvements. “I hit my backhand extremely well and if I can cut out a few of those unforced errors on the forehand, I’m really feeling confident about the way I play.”
Michael Burgess has been a Sports Journalist for the New Zealand Herald since 2005, covering the Olympics, Fifa World Cups, and America’s Cup campaigns. He is a co-host of the Big League podcast.