AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 25, 2023

Ben Shelton

Press Conference

T. PAUL/B. Shelton

7-6, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4

BEN SHELTON: Hi, guys.

THE MODERATOR: Ben, unfortunately not the result that you wanted today. How do you reflect on your match today with Tommy Paul?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, I think it was a great experience. It was fun to be out there, my first quarterfinal of a Grand Slam.

I thought I played all right. Some things that I could do better, things that I would maybe do next time if I could do differently.

But I'm pleased with the result, this being my first time at the Australian Open. So taking a lot of positives away from it.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You had so many smiles when you left the court. What's been so enjoyable about your time here in Australia?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, the crowd - the crowds - have been pretty unbelievable. They supported me. I definitely didn't expect it coming into this tournament, being an American. They kind of treated me like one of their own (smiling). It was really fun to be able to kind of play with the support behind me during my matches. A lot of smiles about that.

I definitely exceeded my expectations this week, what I thought I could do on the court - not just tennis-wise but physically being able to get through as many three-out-of-five-set matches as I did. I mean, I've only played one before in my career. I was pretty pleased with myself in that aspect, as well.

Q. What have you learned about yourself the last fortnight?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, I've learned that I have the ability to be really tough on the court, to stay tough for five sets. I've kind of proven to myself that I can hang with a lot of people for extended periods of time out on the court.

I'm taking that as a huge positive, not just my tennis level but my mentality out on the court, the level that I was able to compete at, and maintain it through the week.

I think those are a couple of big things I take away.

Q. What do you think Tommy did best today?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, I think Tommy, he did a lot of things great. I think that closing out a quarterfinal match for your first time into a slam semifinal, I thought he did a great job serving the match out. He held his nerve. I know I would have been pretty tight in that situation.

I thought that he was extremely solid from the baseline. He did a great job moving me around the court, keeping me off balance. I thought he hit his backhand extremely well today. He kept it low, made it difficult for me to attack.

I think a combination of that and the way that he was able to serve and return today made it a tough matchup.

Q. You talked about you are going to take classes and exams. What is your next tournament? How do you think your schedule is going to work out for the rest of the season?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, my next tournaments will be in the United States. I'm not sure whether it's going to be Dallas or Delray. That's what I have next.

My school is all online, so it's classes that I can work on at the hotel at night. It doesn't change too much of my routine, taking these classes. I haven't had too much trouble with it. I think maybe it could get tricky if travel days match up with exams. So far I've been able to navigate it.

Q. Looking at your ranking now, you're going to be able to play any tournament in the calendar. You haven't played so much outside of hard courts. What do you expect for your performance ahead of the European seen on clay and the grass?

BEN SHELTON: I'm really looking forward to the clay. I mean, the grass as well. I think that the clay is coming first, so that's what's on my mind first.

I think that my game is really well-suited for the clay. I'm looking forward to be able to use the higher bounces to my advantage, moving, sliding. I'm really looking forward to getting on the red clay. And the grass as well.

Obviously new experiences for me playing those tournaments that will mostly be outside of the United States. Yeah, I'm really looking forward to it. I have confidence that I'll be able to figure it out.

Q. The green clay is popular where you live. Have you ever played on red clay?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, yeah, I've practiced weeks at a time at the USTA center in Orlando, Florida. They have Italian red clay there. I've done some training blocks on the red clay. I just haven't had a chance to compete in an actual tournament on the clay.

Q. It's been a long time since an American man won a Grand Slam title. Tommy is the first guy from the U.S. into the semis here in almost 15 years. With this young group of guys, does it feel like American men's tennis is becoming more relevant now?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, I have really high hopes. I was just in the treatment room getting worked on by my physio. My coach Dean came in, we were talking a little bit about American tennis. I was like I don't see why at the end of this year we couldn't have five, six guys in the top 20 with the way that some of these guys are playing that aren't inside the top 20 right now. Jenson Brooksby. Tommy Paul, is he top 20 now?

Q. I think he will be.

BEN SHELTON: Sebastian Korda, quarterfinals here. So many other guys that haven't been named as much this week that have had huge breakthrough years in the last couple years.

I think there's a lot of hope for American tennis. I'm really looking forward to being a part of it.

Q. Is there one memory that will stick out the most from this first trip outside the U.S.?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, I think the match against Popyrin is going to stay with me for a while. The atmosphere on John Cain, probably one of the cooler matches that I've been a part of. Kind of like a Davis Cup feel (smiling). I'd say that's one memory on court that will stick with me for a long time.

Q. Did you get a chance to speak with anybody at home either before or after the match? Over these past couple weeks, have you heard a lot from friends from college?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, definitely a lot of messages over the last few weeks, messages from people that maybe I haven't spoken to in a long time saw me on ESPN.

I didn't get to speak to anyone back home after the match. I guess it was a really bad time this time, like 2, 3 a.m. I'm assuming most of them fell asleep when the match ended or before the match ended.

Yeah, it's been cool to feel the support from back home, being all the way over here, messages I've got from family and friends. It's been really nice during my time here.