US tennis hopeful Ben Shelton stormed into the quarterfinals of the home Grand Slam.
The 20-year-old won the US Open in the round of 16 against his compatriot Tommy Paul thanks to service grenades of up to 239 km/h 6: 4, 6: 3, 4: 6, 6: 4 and is now in front another all-US duel against Frances Tiafoe. Last year’s semi-finalist meets Australian wildcard starter Rinky Hijikata on Sunday.
The unseeded Shelton, still number 47 in the world, took revenge for losing to Paul at the Australian Open in January. There he had reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his career, but lost in four sets. This time the world number 14 turned. Paul was still 4-1 down in the third set, but overall Shelton was much fresher.
The crowd favorite carried the fans away with spectacular balls in the well-filled Arthur Ashe Stadium, and his service became increasingly difficult. In the third set, 149 miles per hour – around 239 km / h – were measured twice, they were the fastest serves in US Open history. The officially recognized “world record” by Shelton’s compatriot John Isner is 253 km/h.